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# Federal Firearms Sentences in the Northern District of Florida, FY2016–2025
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-northern-district-of-florida/
- Published: 2026-11-04T11:14:13.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-04T11:14:13.000Z
- Description: In the Northern District of Florida, 440 people were sentenced for firearms offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, and 431 (98%) received a prison term. The median prison term was 54 months, compared with 42 months for this offense type across all 94 federal districts. 51% of sentences were within t
- Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart
- Tags: Understanding Trends, Federal

[Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [Federal Prosecution Analysis](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) › [Federal Sentences in the Northern District of Florida, FY201](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-northern-district-of-florida/) › Firearms: Northern District of Florida

**In brief:** In the Northern District of Florida, 440 people were sentenced for firearms offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, and 431 (98%) received a prison term. The median prison term was 54 months, compared with 42 months for this offense type across all 94 federal districts. 51% of sentences were within the guideline range.

Updated November 4, 2026 · Sources: U.S. Sentencing Commission and Federal Judicial Center, fiscal years 2016–2025

This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 440 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](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) series, which builds on [Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/military-sentencing-guidelines-federal-system/). How the numbers were built: [How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-data-methodology/).

## Almost All Cases Fell Under One Guideline

The U.S. Sentencing Commission groups cases into offense types, and "Firearms" is one of them. In this district, 435 of the 440 people had the same primary guideline: §2K2.1 (Unlawful Receipt, Possession, or Transportation of Firearms or Ammunition).

The other primary guidelines were §2K2.5 (Possession of Firearm or Dangerous Weapon in Federal Facility), with 2 people, §2X3.1 (Accessory After the Fact), with 1, and §2K1.3 (Unlawful Receipt, Possession, or Transportation of Explosive Materials), with 1.

Firearms cases were 16% of the 2,768 people sentenced in the district across these years.

## Prison Terms

431 of the 440 people (98%) received a prison term, and 4 (less than 1%) received probation only. Among those sent to prison, the median prison term was 54 months, or 4.5 years. A quarter received 87 months or more, and a quarter received 30 months or less.

For all 94 districts, the firearms offense type had 78,851 people, 94% were sent to prison, and the median was 42 months. The district's median for all offenses was 48 months, so firearms terms here were higher than the district-wide median.

## Pleas and Trials

417 of 440 (95%) pleaded guilty, and 23 were convicted after a trial. The national rate was 97%, and the rate for all offenses in the district was 93%.

The median prison term was 51 months after a guilty plea and 180 months after a trial. These are different groups of cases, so the gap does not show what a trial costs any one person. Among guilty pleas, 96% had a written plea agreement and 4% were straight pleas.

## Guideline Range and Mandatory Minimums

The sentence was within the guideline range for 51% of the 440 people (224). It was below the range at the government's request for 10% (44) and below the range without a government request for 33% (143). 7% (29) were above the range.

The share within the range was about the same as the national share of 52%. It was higher than the 44% for all offenses in the district. Sentences above the range were a small share of the total.

A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 89 of the 440 people (20%).

## Supervised Release, Fines, and Criminal History

429 people (98%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, and the median term was 36 months. A fine was ordered for 7 (2%), and restitution for 13 (3%).

12% of the people were in the lowest criminal history category, and 32% were in the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.

## Counts by Year

Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 had 205 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 had 235\. The yearly count was lowest in 2022, with 24 people, and highest in 2025, with 66.

Yearly medians in the table range from 39.5 months in 2019 to 72 months in 2021 and 2022\. The records do not explain the differences.

| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
| ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- |
| 2016        | 45               | 58.5 months   | 96%            |
| 2017        | 40               | 49.5 months   | 88%            |
| 2018        | 62               | 60 months     | 98%            |
| 2019        | 58               | 39.5 months   | 93%            |
| 2020        | 38               | 60 months     | 95%            |
| 2021        | 37               | 72 months     | 95%            |
| 2022        | 24               | 72 months     | 100%           |
| 2023        | 37               | 60 months     | 92%            |
| 2024        | 33               | 40 months     | 97%            |
| 2025        | 66               | 40.5 months   | 95%            |

## Military Installations and Limits

Eglin AFB, Hurlburt Field, Pensacola, and Tyndall AFB, all in Florida, are installations in this district that appear in this site's court-martial data. Courts-martial are tried in military courts, not in this federal district court.

The data counts only people who were convicted and sentenced, and prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served.

### How We Counted

Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Northern District of Florida (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Florida North") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Firearms" (440). 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](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/military-sentencing-guidelines-federal-system/) (the background article)
- [Federal Prosecution Analysis](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) (all federal posts)
- [How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-data-methodology/) (sources and method)
- [Federal Sentences in the Northern District of Florida, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-northern-district-of-florida/) (overview)
- [Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Northern District of Florida, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-northern-district-of-florida/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Northern District of Florida, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-northern-district-of-florida/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Northern District of Florida, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-immigration-sentences-northern-district-of-florida/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Sexual Abuse Sentences in the Northern District of Florida, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-sexual-abuse-sentences-northern-district-of-florida/) (same district, other offense type)
- [U.S. Sentencing Commission, Individual Offender Datafiles](https://www.ussc.gov/research/datafiles/commission-datafiles?ref=bodiesburied.com) (source)
- [Federal Judicial Center, Integrated Database (criminal defendants)](https://www.fjc.gov/research/idb?ref=bodiesburied.com) (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](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/?ref=bodiesburied.com). This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.