Federal Environmental Offense Sentences in the Western District of Michigan, FY2016–2025
Prison was uncommon for federal environmental offenses in the Western District of Michigan. Of the 32 people sentenced, 3 (9%) received a prison term and 15 (47%) received probation only, in a record that runs from fiscal year 2016 to 2024. For all 94 federal districts together, 28% of people in thi
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the Western District of Michigan, FY201 › Environmental Offense: Western District of Michigan
In brief: Prison was uncommon for federal environmental offenses in the Western District of Michigan. Of the 32 people sentenced, 3 (9%) received a prison term and 15 (47%) received probation only, in a record that runs from fiscal year 2016 to 2024. For all 94 federal districts together, 28% of people in this offense type were sent to prison.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 32 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.
Few Prison Terms, Many Probation Sentences
The U.S. Sentencing Commission counted 32 people in its "Environmental" offense type for this district. Their sentences fall in fiscal years 2016 to 2024, though the data cover 2016 to 2025 as a whole.
Prison was given to 3 people (9%), and probation only, with no prison or other confinement, to 15 (47%). The records summarized here do not list the type of sentence for the others.
The share sent to prison here was lower than the national share of 28%.
The Prison Terms
Among the 3 people sent to prison, the median prison term was 3 months. A quarter received 3.5 months or more, and a quarter received 1.7 months or less.
The national median for this offense type was 5 months, and the district's median for all offenses was 51 months. A median based on 3 people is a very small sample and says little beyond those cases.
Supervised release after prison was ordered for 3 people (9%), with a median term of 12 months.
Fines and Restitution
A fine was ordered for 18 people (56%), and restitution for 21 (66%). Money payments were therefore more common than prison in this group.
By criminal history, 94% were in the lowest category, category I, and 0% were in the highest, category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Pleas, Mandatory Minimums, and the Guideline Range
All 32 people (100%) pleaded guilty, and 0 were convicted after a trial. Among the guilty pleas, 100% had a written plea agreement. Nationally, 98% of people in this type pleaded guilty.
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 0 of the 32 people.
A sentence within the guideline range was given to 7 people (22%). 11 sentences (34%) were below the range at the government's request, and 14 (44%) were below it without a government request. None was above the range. Across all districts, 50% of sentences in this type were within the range.
Which Guidelines Were Used?
The most common primary guideline was §2Q1.2 (Mishandling of Hazardous or Toxic Substances or Pesticides), with 15 cases. Next was §2Q2.1 (Offenses Involving Fish, Wildlife, and Plants), with 12.
These cases were 1% of the 3,034 people sentenced in the district in fiscal years 2016 to 2025.
Counts by Year
From fiscal year 2016 to 2019 there were 15 people, and from 2020 to 2025 there were 17. The yearly table lists only 5 years, with between 1 and 11 people in each. Most rows show n/a for the median.
The Commission counts only people who were convicted and sentenced, so acquittals and dismissals are not included. The records also cannot show why prison was given in some cases and not others.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 3 | n/a | 3 of 3 |
| 2018 | 1 | 4 months | 1 of 1 |
| 2019 | 11 | n/a | 100% |
| 2023 | 6 | 1.7 months | 6 of 6 |
| 2024 | 11 | n/a | 100% |
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Western District of Michigan (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Michigan West") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Environmental" (32). 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 Western District of Michigan, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Western District of Michigan, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Western District of Michigan, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Western District of Michigan, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Western District of Michigan, 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.