Federal Extortion and Racketeering Sentences in the District of Nevada, FY2016–2025
10 people in the District of Nevada were sentenced in the Commission's "Extortion/Racketeering" offense type in fiscal years 2016 to 2022. The median prison term was 54.5 months (4.5 years), which is higher than the 30 months for this offense type in all 94 districts. The 3 people convicted after a
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the District of Nevada, FY2016–2025 › Extortion and Racketeering: District of Nevada
In brief: 10 people in the District of Nevada were sentenced in the Commission's "Extortion/Racketeering" offense type in fiscal years 2016 to 2022. The median prison term was 54.5 months (4.5 years), which is higher than the 30 months for this offense type in all 94 districts. The 3 people convicted after a trial had a median of 168 months.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 10 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.
Trial Sentences Were Much Longer Than Plea Sentences
7 of the 10 people (70%) pleaded guilty, and 3 were convicted after a trial. The median prison term after a guilty plea was 12 months. After a trial it was 168 months, based on 3 people convicted at trial and sent to prison.
The groups are small, and the records give no case details, so they cannot show what accounts for the difference. Guilty pleas were 95% for this offense type in all districts and 96% for all offenses in this district.
Prison Terms Overall
8 of the 10 people (80%) received a prison term, and 1 (10%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement. In all districts, 81% were sent to prison.
Among those sent to prison, the median prison term was 54.5 months (4.5 years). A quarter received 155.2 months or more, and a quarter received 12 months or less. The wide gap between those figures reflects the mix of plea and trial sentences. For all offenses in the District of Nevada, the median was 33 months. Terms are those imposed, not time served.
Mandatory Minimums and the Guideline Range
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 2 of the 9 people with that information recorded.
Within the guideline range: 50% (5 people). Below the range at the government's request: 30% (3). Below the range without a government request: 20% (2). Above the range: 0% (0). Sentences within the range were 36% for this offense type in all districts and 33% for all offenses in this district.
Which Guidelines Defined the Category
The Commission assigns the offense type by the primary guideline. The most common here was §2B3.2 (Extortion by Force or Threat of Injury or Serious Damage), with 5 people. §2B3.3 (Blackmail and Similar Forms of Extortion) and §2E4.1 (Unlawful Conduct Relating to Contraband Cigarettes and Smokeless Tobacco) each had 1.
These cases were less than 1% of the 3,640 people sentenced in the District of Nevada in fiscal years 2016 to 2025.
Supervision, Fines, Restitution, and Criminal History
7 people (70%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 2 (20%), and restitution for 5 (50%).
By criminal history, 60% were in the lowest category I and 0% in the highest (VI). Among guilty pleas, 6 of 7 had a written plea agreement and 1 of 7 was a straight plea. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Counts by Fiscal Year
8 people were sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2019, and 2 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. Federal fiscal years are counted from October 1 to the end of September. The last year with anyone in this group was 2022.
Yearly counts are 1 to 3 people. The medians in 2017 and 2018, of 87 months and 151 months, each rest on 3 people, and 2 years show n/a. The table does not support a trend.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 1 | 12 months | 1 of 1 |
| 2017 | 3 | 87 months | 2 of 3 |
| 2018 | 3 | 151 months | 1 of 3 |
| 2019 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
| 2020 | 1 | 22 months | 1 of 1 |
| 2022 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
Limits and Context
The data counts only people who were convicted and sentenced, so acquittals and dismissals are not included.
Creech AFB and Nellis AFB, installations in this district, are in the site's court-martial data. Courts-martial are military trials, held apart from this district court.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of Nevada (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Nevada") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Extortion/Racketeering" (10). 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.
Mandatory minimum sentences. Many federal statutes on drugs, images of child exploitation, child sex abuse, and firearms carry mandatory minimum prison terms. The UCMJ has mandatory minimums only for a few offenses (a dishonorable discharge or dismissal for rape and sexual assault, and life for premeditated murder). Federal sentences for these offenses are partly set by Congress, not by the judge.
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 Nevada, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of Nevada, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of Nevada, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the District of Nevada, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of Nevada, 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.