Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of Vermont, FY2016–2025
202 people were sentenced for firearms offenses in the District of Vermont in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 96% received a prison term, and the median prison term was 18 months. For firearms cases in all 94 districts, the median was 42 months.
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the District of Vermont, FY2016–2025 › Firearms: District of Vermont
In brief: 202 people were sentenced for firearms offenses in the District of Vermont in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 96% received a prison term, and the median prison term was 18 months. For firearms cases in all 94 districts, the median was 42 months.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 202 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 of 18 Months
193 of the 202 people (96%) received a prison term, and 8 (4%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement. Among those sent to prison, the median prison term was 18 months. A quarter received 40 months or more, and a quarter received 5 months or less.
For firearms in all 94 districts, the Commission counts 78,851 people. 94% were sent to prison, and the median prison term was 42 months. The Vermont median was lower than the national median. It was the same as the 18 months for all offenses in the district.
Cases Are More Frequent in Recent Years
Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 account for 39 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 account for 163. The fiscal year runs from October 1 to the end of September. The table shows 41 people in 2025 and 6 in 2017. Median prison terms range from 0.5 months in 2021 to 39 months in 2019.
The records do not show why the number of cases was higher in later years. The yearly counts are small, so a single year's median says little on its own.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 8 | 18.5 months | 8 of 8 |
| 2017 | 6 | 12.1 months | 6 of 6 |
| 2018 | 7 | 20 months | 6 of 7 |
| 2019 | 18 | 39 months | 94% |
| 2020 | 28 | 12 months | 100% |
| 2021 | 17 | 0.5 months | 100% |
| 2022 | 23 | 15 months | 100% |
| 2023 | 28 | 27 months | 100% |
| 2024 | 26 | 28.5 months | 96% |
| 2025 | 41 | 18 months | 98% |
Guideline Ranges
19% of sentences (38 people) were within the guideline range. 46% (93) were below the range at the government's request, and 31% (62) were below the range without a government request. 4% (9) were above the range.
For firearms in all districts, 52% of sentences were within the range. For all offenses in this district, the figure was 21%. The guideline range is the recommended sentence calculated under the federal sentencing guidelines, and a sentence below it is a departure or variance that the data records by who asked for it. Firearms cases in Vermont were within the range less often than firearms cases nationally.
Pleas, Trials, and Mandatory Minimums
198 of 202 people (98%) pleaded guilty, and 4 were convicted after a trial. 98% of the guilty pleas had a written plea agreement.
The median prison term was 18 months after a guilty plea and 47 months after a trial, based on 4 people. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 7 of the 202 people (3%).
Primary Guidelines and the Offense Type
The Commission's "Firearms" type was 12% of the 1,619 people sentenced in the district. §2K2.1 (Unlawful Receipt, Possession, or Transportation of Firearms or Ammunition) was the primary guideline for 193 people. §2K1.1 (Failure to Report Theft of Explosive Materials) and §2K1.3 (Unlawful Receipt, Possession, or Transportation of Explosive Materials) each applied to 1 person.
Supervised Release and Criminal History
189 people (94%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 3 people (1%), and restitution for 7 (3%).
29% of the group were in criminal history category I, and 20% were in category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
What the Records Cannot Show
The data counts only people convicted and sentenced, and it reports terms imposed, not time served. It does not describe the facts of any case, the type of weapon, or the reasons for any sentence.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of Vermont (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Vermont") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Firearms" (202). 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 Vermont, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of Vermont, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the District of Vermont, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of Vermont, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Drug Possession Sentences in the District of Vermont, 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.