Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of Minnesota, FY2016–2025
640 people were sentenced for firearms offenses in the District of Minnesota in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, which was 18% of the 3,630 people sentenced in the district. The median prison term was 70 months (5.8 years), compared with 42 months for firearms offenses in all 94 federal districts together
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the District of Minnesota, FY2016–2025 › Firearms: District of Minnesota
In brief: 640 people were sentenced for firearms offenses in the District of Minnesota in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, which was 18% of the 3,630 people sentenced in the district. The median prison term was 70 months (5.8 years), compared with 42 months for firearms offenses in all 94 federal districts together.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 640 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.
Nearly All Cases Fall Under One Guideline
The U.S. Sentencing Commission groups cases by offense type, using the primary guideline. For firearms in Minnesota, 627 of the 640 people were sentenced under §2K2.1 (Unlawful Receipt, Possession, or Transportation of Firearms or Ammunition). 1 person was sentenced under §2K1.3 (Unlawful Receipt, Possession, or Transportation of Explosive Materials).
Firearms cases were 18% of the district's sentenced people. The median prison term for all offenses in the District of Minnesota was 70 months, the same as the median for firearms cases here.
Prison Terms and Their Length
629 of the 640 people (98%) received a prison term, and 4 (less than 1%) received probation only. In all districts, 94% were sent to prison.
A quarter of those sent to prison received 96 months or more, and a quarter received 44 months or less. These are the terms imposed, not the time served.
Sentences Within and Below the Range
309 people (48%) were sentenced within the guideline range. 220 (34%) were below the range without a government request, and 81 (13%) were below it at the government's request. 30 people (5%) were above the range.
The share within the range was 52% for firearms in all districts and 31% for all offenses in this district. A mandatory minimum applied to 90 of the 640 people (14%).
Guilty Pleas Compared With Trials
599 of 640 people (94%) pleaded guilty, and 41 were convicted after a trial. The median prison term was 65 months after a guilty plea and 120 months after a trial.
All districts had 97% guilty pleas for firearms offenses, and the district's rate for all offenses was 94%. Of the guilty pleas in Minnesota, 98% had a written plea agreement and 2% were straight pleas.
Supervised Release, Fines, and Criminal History
627 people (98%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 1 person, and restitution for 32 (5%).
Only 11% were in the lowest criminal history category, and 41% were in the highest. The records do not show how criminal history interacted with the sentences. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
How the Yearly Numbers Moved
219 people were sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2019, and 421 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. A fiscal year runs October 1 to the end of September.
Yearly counts in the table range from 35 people in 2021 to 104 in 2024. The yearly median was 94 months in 2020, which had 36 people, and 60 months in both 2024 and 2025. The records cannot show what drove those changes.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 73 | 78 months | 95% |
| 2017 | 57 | 71 months | 95% |
| 2018 | 44 | 70 months | 95% |
| 2019 | 45 | 70.5 months | 89% |
| 2020 | 36 | 94 months | 89% |
| 2021 | 35 | 57 months | 100% |
| 2022 | 82 | 70 months | 90% |
| 2023 | 93 | 66 months | 97% |
| 2024 | 104 | 60 months | 93% |
| 2025 | 71 | 60 months | 93% |
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of Minnesota (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Minnesota") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Firearms" (640). 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 Minnesota, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of Minnesota, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of Minnesota, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Robbery Sentences in the District of Minnesota, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Child Pornography Sentences in the District of Minnesota, 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.