Federal Environmental Offense Sentences in the District of Puerto Rico, FY2016–2025
Of the 25 people sentenced for environmental offenses in the District of Puerto Rico in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 14 (56%) received probation only and 11 (44%) received a prison term. The median prison term was 12 months. For all 94 districts, 28% were sent to prison and the median was 5 months.
· Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 6 min read
Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the District of Puerto Rico, FY2016–202 › Environmental Offense: District of Puerto Rico
In brief: Of the 25 people sentenced for environmental offenses in the District of Puerto Rico in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 14 (56%) received probation only and 11 (44%) received a prison term. The median prison term was 12 months. For all 94 districts, 28% were sent to prison and the median was 5 months.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 25 people sentenced in federal court in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Acquittals and dismissals come from a second source, the Federal Judicial Center's records of 753,808 federal defendants whose cases ended in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. It is part of the Federal Prosecution Analysis series, which builds on Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System. How the numbers were built: How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built.
Probation Only for 56% of These Cases
Probation only means no prison or other confinement. It was the sentence for 14 of the 25 people (56%) in Puerto Rico. The other 11 (44%) were sent to prison.
Across all districts, 28% of people sentenced for environmental offenses were sent to prison. A larger share of the Puerto Rico group was sent to prison, and the median prison term was also higher: 12 months, compared with 5 months for all districts. A quarter of those sent to prison in Puerto Rico received 13 months or more, and a quarter received 12 months or less.
Fish, Wildlife, and Pollution Guidelines
"Environmental" is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's offense type, assigned from the primary guideline in each case. The most common in this district was §2Q2.1 (Offenses Involving Fish, Wildlife, and Plants), used for 13 people.
Next were §2Q1.3 (Mishandling of Other Environmental Pollutants) for 6 and §2Q1.2 (Mishandling of Hazardous or Toxic Substances or Pesticides) for 4. These cases were less than 1% of the 9,794 people sentenced in the district, where the median prison term for all offenses was 60 months.
Fines Were Common
A fine was ordered for 12 of the 25 people (48%), and restitution for 2 (8%). Supervised release after prison was ordered for 11 people (44%), with a median term of 36 months.
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 0 of the 25 people (0%).
Pleas and Criminal History
All 25 people (100%) pleaded guilty, and none were convicted after a trial. The rate for all districts in this offense type was 98%. Among guilty pleas, 88% had a written plea agreement and 12% were straight pleas.
In criminal history, 96% were in the lowest category and 0% in the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Guideline Range
Within the range were 13 sentences (52%). Below the range at the government's request were 8 (32%), and below it without a request were 4 (16%). None were above the range (0%).
For all districts, 50% of sentences in this offense type were within the range. For all offenses in Puerto Rico, 54% were.
Small Yearly Counts and Limits of the Data
Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 had 4 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 had 21. No year had more than 7 people, and the table shows "n/a" for the median in years with too few prison sentences. These counts are too small to show a trend.
The data counts only people who were convicted and sentenced. Acquittals and dismissals are not in it, and prison terms are those imposed, not time served. The records cannot show why a larger share of this group received prison than in all districts.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
| 2017 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
| 2018 | 2 | n/a | 2 of 2 |
| 2021 | 6 | 7 months | 6 of 6 |
| 2022 | 3 | n/a | 3 of 3 |
| 2023 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
| 2024 | 4 | 13 months | 4 of 4 |
| 2025 | 7 | 12 months | 7 of 7 |
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of Puerto Rico (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Puerto Rico") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Environmental" (25). Offense types are the Commission's OFFGUIDE categories.
Federal fiscal years run from October 1 to September 30. No person, judge, or lawyer is identified in any of these records.
What to Keep in Mind
No parole in federal prison; credit for good conduct. Federal prison has no parole for crimes committed on or after November 1, 1987. A federal prisoner can earn up to 54 days of good conduct credit for each year of the sentence the judge imposed, which is about 15%. Some federal prisoners can also earn First Step Act time credits, but many offenses make a person ineligible. The numbers in this post are the sentences judges imposed, not the time people actually served.
Federal supervised release. Most federal prison sentences are followed by a term of supervised release that the judge sets as part of the sentence. A person who violates it can be sent back to prison. A court-martial cannot sentence anyone to supervision after release. Military parole and mandatory supervised release are decided later by a board, not by the judge at trial.
Who decides the sentence, and under what rules. Federal judges sentence every federal case. They must calculate the Sentencing Guidelines range, which is advisory, and must impose any mandatory minimum the statute requires unless an exception applies. In courts-martial, the accused could choose sentencing by members until the rules changed. For cases in which every guilty finding is for an offense committed after December 27, 2023, a military judge sentences alone, within sentencing parameters. Courts-martial tried in 2024 and later include both old-rule and new-rule cases, and the data cannot tell them apart.
Time periods. Federal numbers are by federal fiscal year (October 1 to September 30), based on the sentencing date. The military numbers are by trial date. Neither source has the date of the offense, so a change in law shows up in either data set gradually.
How life sentences and "time served" are counted. In the federal numbers, a life sentence is counted as 470 months, and any other sentence longer than 470 months is counted as just under 470 months. A sentence of "time served" is counted as one day (0.03 months). Averages are affected by these rules; medians much less.
Related Analysis
- Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System (the background article)
- Federal Prosecution Analysis (all federal posts)
- How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built (sources and method)
- Federal Sentences in the District of Puerto Rico, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of Puerto Rico, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of Puerto Rico, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the District of Puerto Rico, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of Puerto Rico, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- U.S. Sentencing Commission, Individual Offender Datafiles (source)
- Federal Judicial Center, Integrated Database (criminal defendants) (source)
About the author. Jocelyn C. Stewart is a retired Army JAG with more than 24 years of trying courts-martial and more than 200 jury trials. She hosts Where All The Bodies Are Buried and runs the Law Office of Jocelyn C. Stewart. This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.