Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of Nebraska, FY2016–2025
487 people were sentenced for firearms offenses in the District of Nebraska in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The median prison term was 36 months, compared with 42 months for firearms cases in all 94 federal districts. 50% of sentences were within the guideline range, and 27% were below it without a go
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the District of Nebraska, FY2016–2025 › Firearms: District of Nebraska
In brief: 487 people were sentenced for firearms offenses in the District of Nebraska in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The median prison term was 36 months, compared with 42 months for firearms cases in all 94 federal districts. 50% of sentences were within the guideline range, and 27% were below it without a government request.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 487 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.
Sentences Below the Range Without a Government Request
The guideline range is the sentencing range calculated under the federal sentencing guidelines. 243 people (50%) received a sentence within that range. 86 people (18%) were sentenced below the range at the government's request, and 131 people (27%) were sentenced below it without a government request. 27 people (6%) were sentenced above the range.
Across all 94 districts, 52% of firearms sentences were within the range. In this district, 50% were. For all offenses in the District of Nebraska, the figure was 48%.
Prison Terms and Probation
450 of the 487 people (92%) received a prison term, and 25 (5%) received probation only. The median prison term was 36 months, or 3 years. A quarter of those sent to prison received 60 months or more, and a quarter received 21 months or less.
The median for all offenses in this district was 57 months. Firearms cases therefore carried shorter median terms than the district's cases overall. Prison terms here are the terms imposed, not the time served.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 45 | 30 months | 100% |
| 2017 | 45 | 24 months | 96% |
| 2018 | 37 | 30 months | 97% |
| 2019 | 36 | 45.5 months | 94% |
| 2020 | 45 | 30 months | 98% |
| 2021 | 44 | 35 months | 89% |
| 2022 | 67 | 36.5 months | 99% |
| 2023 | 84 | 47 months | 98% |
| 2024 | 46 | 41.5 months | 93% |
| 2025 | 38 | 46 months | 92% |
Changes Across the Fiscal Years
The yearly table lists the median prison term for each fiscal year, which runs from October 1 through the end of September. The median was 24 months in fiscal year 2017 and 47 months in fiscal year 2023.
The number of people sentenced was 163 in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 324 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. The records do not show what drove the larger count in the later years. Single-year counts of 36 to 84 people are small, so one year should not be read as a trend.
Guilty Pleas, Trials, and Plea Agreements
467 of the 487 people (96%) pleaded guilty, and 20 were convicted after a trial. The median prison term after a guilty plea was 36 months. After a trial it was 102 months, based on 20 people.
Among those who pleaded guilty, 72% had a written plea agreement and 28% were straight pleas with no agreement. The comparison between plea and trial terms describes separate groups of cases. It does not show what a plea changed in any one case.
What Kinds of Firearms Offenses?
"Firearms" is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's offense type, which groups cases by their primary guideline. In this district, 475 cases used §2K2.1 (Unlawful Receipt, Possession, or Transportation of Firearms or Ammunition). 4 used §2X3.1 (Accessory After the Fact), 2 used §2K1.3 (Unlawful Receipt, Possession, or Transportation of Explosive Materials), and 1 used §2K1.1 (Failure to Report Theft of Explosive Materials).
Firearms cases were 10% of the 4,887 people sentenced in the District of Nebraska over the 10 fiscal years.
Mandatory Minimums, Supervised Release, and Criminal History
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 25 people (5%). 448 people (92%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 7 people and restitution for 6.
21% of the people were in the lowest criminal history category, and 18% were in the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
What the Numbers Leave Out
The Commission data counts only people who were convicted and sentenced. Acquittals and dismissals are not in it, and neither are the facts of individual cases.
Offutt AFB, Nebraska, is in this district and appears in this site's court-martial data. Courts-martial are tried in military courts, not in this federal district court, and the numbers above describe federal cases only.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of Nebraska (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Nebraska") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Firearms" (487). 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 Nebraska, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of Nebraska, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the District of Nebraska, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of Nebraska, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Child Pornography Sentences in the District of Nebraska, 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.