Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of Kansas, FY2016–2025
Firearms cases were 20% of the 4,217 people sentenced in the District of Kansas in fiscal years 2016 to 2025: 862 people. The median prison term was 37 months, shorter than the 42 months for firearms cases in all 94 federal districts. Sentences were within the guideline range for 49%.
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the District of Kansas, FY2016–2025 › Firearms: District of Kansas
In brief: Firearms cases were 20% of the 4,217 people sentenced in the District of Kansas in fiscal years 2016 to 2025: 862 people. The median prison term was 37 months, shorter than the 42 months for firearms cases in all 94 federal districts. Sentences were within the guideline range for 49%.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 862 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.
How Long Were Firearms Prison Terms?
Of the 862 people, 804 (93%) received a prison term and 54 (6%) received probation only. In all districts, 94% were sent to prison.
Among those sent to prison, the median term was 37 months (3.1 years). A quarter received 60 months or more, and a quarter received 24 months or less.
The median for all offenses in the district was 46 months. Firearms terms were shorter than that.
Which Guideline Applied
The Commission's category "Firearms" is assigned by the primary guideline in each sentence. For 738 people, it was §2K2.1 (Unlawful Receipt, Possession, or Transportation of Firearms or Ammunition).
3 people each were sentenced under §2K1.3 (Unlawful Receipt, Possession, or Transportation of Explosive Materials) and §2K2.5 (Possession of Firearm or Dangerous Weapon in Federal Facility). One was sentenced under §2X3.1 (Accessory After the Fact).
Sentences Above the Guideline Range
Within the guideline range were 49% (422) of the 860 people with the information. Above the range were 8% (69).
Below the range at the government's request were 31% (267), and below the range without a government request were 12% (102). For all districts, 52% were within the range.
Mandatory Minimums, Pleas, and Trials
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 115 of the 860 people with that information recorded (13%).
There were 846 guilty pleas (98%) and 16 convictions after a trial. The median was 37 months after a guilty plea and 82.5 months after a trial, based on 14 people sent to prison.
Among guilty pleas, 94% had a written plea agreement and 5% were straight pleas with no agreement.
After Prison and Criminal History
Supervised release was ordered for 791 people (92%), with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 13 (2%), and restitution for 35 (4%).
Criminal history category I, the lowest, applied to 14% of people. Category VI, the highest, applied to 25%.
Counts in Each Fiscal Year
The district sentenced 412 people in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 450 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. The yearly median was 30 months in fiscal years 2017 and 2018 and 46 months in fiscal years 2021, 2024, and 2025.
Those yearly numbers are the Commission's records for each fiscal year, which begins on October 1.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 78 | 36 months | 96% |
| 2017 | 125 | 30 months | 98% |
| 2018 | 112 | 30 months | 100% |
| 2019 | 97 | 36 months | 99% |
| 2020 | 65 | 37 months | 97% |
| 2021 | 111 | 46 months | 98% |
| 2022 | 85 | 38.5 months | 100% |
| 2023 | 65 | 41 months | 98% |
| 2024 | 62 | 46 months | 98% |
| 2025 | 62 | 46 months | 95% |
Installations and What Is Not Counted
Fort Leavenworth, Fort Riley, and McConnell AFB are in this district. Courts-martial are tried in military courts and are not part of these federal numbers.
Only people who were convicted and sentenced appear. Dismissals and acquittals are not in the records, and prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of Kansas (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Kansas") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Firearms" (862). 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 Kansas, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of Kansas, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of Kansas, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the District of Kansas, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Robbery Sentences in the District of Kansas, 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.