Federal Extortion and Racketeering Sentences in the District of New Jersey, FY2016–2025
42 people were sentenced in the District of New Jersey for extortion and racketeering in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 34 (81%) received a prison term, with a median of 40.5 months (3.4 years), higher than the 30 months across all 94 districts. 41 of the 42 pleaded guilty.
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the District of New Jersey, FY2016–2025 › Extortion and Racketeering: District of New Jersey
In brief: 42 people were sentenced in the District of New Jersey for extortion and racketeering in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 34 (81%) received a prison term, with a median of 40.5 months (3.4 years), higher than the 30 months across all 94 districts. 41 of the 42 pleaded guilty.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 42 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.
Median Prison Term Compared With Other Benchmarks
34 of the 42 people (81%) received a prison term, and 6 (14%) received probation only. The median prison term among those sent to prison was 40.5 months. A quarter received 62.2 months or more, and a quarter received 10.5 months or less.
Across all 94 districts, 81% of people in this offense type were sent to prison, the same share as here, and the median was 30 months. For all offenses in this district, the median was 37 months.
The median for this offense type was higher than both.
Guidelines Behind the Category
"Extortion/Racketeering" is the Commission's offense type, based on the primary guideline. The most common was §2B3.2 (Extortion by Force or Threat of Injury or Serious Damage), with 15 people.
9 people were sentenced under §2E4.1 (Unlawful Conduct Relating to Contraband Cigarettes and Smokeless Tobacco), 6 under §2E1.4 (Use of Interstate Commerce Facilities in the Commission of Murder-For-Hire), and 4 under §2E1.1 (Unlawful Conduct Relating to Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations).
These cases were less than 1% of the 6,441 people sentenced in the district.
One Trial Among 42 Cases
41 people (98%) pleaded guilty, and 1 was convicted after a trial. 98% of the guilty pleas had a written plea agreement, and 2% were straight pleas.
The median prison term after a guilty plea was 38 months. The trial figure, 84 months, comes from 1 person and cannot be compared with a median.
Across all 94 districts, 95% of people in this offense type pleaded guilty.
Guideline Range and Mandatory Minimums
The position against the range is recorded for all 42 people. 26% (11) of sentences were within it, and 43% (18) were below it at the government's request. 26% (11) were below it without a request, and 5% (2) were above it.
For this offense type across all 94 districts, 36% were within the range. For all offenses in this district, 37% were.
A mandatory minimum applied to 5 of the 42 people (12%).
Restitution, Fines, and Supervised Release
Restitution was ordered for 21 people (50%), and a fine for 8 (19%). 34 people (81%) were ordered to serve supervised release, with a median term of 36 months.
Prior Record
67% had the least prior record (criminal history category I), and 5% had the most (category VI). Courts-martial do not record criminal history.
Year-by-Year Counts
Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 had 25 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 had 17. In the table, fiscal year 2016 had 14 people, and most other years had 1 to 7.
These small groups do not support a trend. A year with no row had no people in this category.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 14 | 34.1 months | 100% |
| 2017 | 4 | 60 months | 4 of 4 |
| 2018 | 3 | 150 months | 3 of 3 |
| 2019 | 4 | 15 months | 4 of 4 |
| 2020 | 1 | 63 months | 1 of 1 |
| 2022 | 2 | 0 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2023 | 2 | 48.5 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2024 | 7 | 84 months | 6 of 7 |
| 2025 | 5 | 25.5 months | 5 of 5 |
What the Records Do Not Show
The data counts only people who were convicted and sentenced. Acquittals and dismissals are not included, and the prison terms are those ordered, not served.
Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst is in New Jersey. Courts-martial are tried in military courts, and this post uses federal numbers only.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of New Jersey (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "New Jersey") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Extortion/Racketeering" (42). 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 New Jersey, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of New Jersey, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of New Jersey, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of New Jersey, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the District of New Jersey, 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.