> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.bodiesburied.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Federal Firearms Sentences in the Western District of Wisconsin, FY2016–2025 - URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-western-district-of-wisconsin/ - Published: 2026-11-04T11:16:47.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-04T11:16:47.000Z - Description: 243 people were sentenced for firearms offenses in the Western District of Wisconsin in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The median prison term was 42 months, the same as for all 94 districts. 51% of sentences were below the guideline range without a government request, and 36% were within the range. - 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 Western District of Wisconsin, FY20](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-western-district-of-wisconsin/) › Firearms: Western District of Wisconsin **In brief:** 243 people were sentenced for firearms offenses in the Western District of Wisconsin in fiscal years 2016 to 2025\. The median prison term was 42 months, the same as for all 94 districts. 51% of sentences were below the guideline range without a government request, and 36% were within the 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 243 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/). ## Sentences Below the Guideline Range The records show the position for all 243 people. The largest group, 125 people (51%), was sentenced below the range without a government request. Sentences within the range were given to 88 (36%), and sentences below the range at the government's request to 25 (10%). 5 people (2%) were sentenced above the range. In all 94 districts, 52% of firearms sentences were within the range, which is a higher share than here. For all offenses in this district, the within-range share was 32%. ## Prison Terms 228 of the 243 people (94%) received a prison term, and 14 (6%) received probation only. In all districts, 94% were sent to prison. The median prison term was 42 months (3.5 years). A quarter received 60 months or more, and a quarter received 27 months or less. The median for all offenses in this district was 59.5 months, so firearms terms had a lower median than the district's cases as a whole. The figures are terms imposed, not time served. ## One Guideline Covers the Group The U.S. Sentencing Commission assigns an offense type from the main guideline used at sentencing. For "Firearms," the primary guideline was §2K2.1 (Unlawful Receipt, Possession, or Transportation of Firearms or Ammunition) for 241 of the 243 people. Firearms cases were 17% of the 1,403 people sentenced in the district in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. ## Mandatory Minimums Were Uncommon A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 9 of the 243 people with that information recorded (4%). For most of the group, no mandatory minimum applied. 240 people (99%) pleaded guilty, and 3 were convicted after a trial. The median prison term was 42 months after a guilty plea and 204 months after a trial. The trial figure rests on 2 people who were sent to prison. ## After Prison and Prior Record Supervised release was ordered for 221 people (91%), with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 8 people (3%), and restitution for 8 (3%). In criminal history, 14% were in the lowest category, Category I, and 21% were in the highest, Category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field. ## Counts by Fiscal Year The district sentenced 73 people in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 170 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025\. The smallest year was fiscal year 2017, with 4 people. The largest were fiscal years 2023 and 2025, each with 31. Yearly medians range from 32.5 months to 52.5 months. These changes between years are modest and the table does not establish a trend. | Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty | | ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- | | 2016 | 22 | 44 months | 100% | | 2017 | 4 | 33 months | 4 of 4 | | 2018 | 21 | 48 months | 90% | | 2019 | 26 | 42 months | 100% | | 2020 | 30 | 39.5 months | 100% | | 2021 | 30 | 49.5 months | 97% | | 2022 | 27 | 37 months | 100% | | 2023 | 31 | 32.5 months | 100% | | 2024 | 21 | 52.5 months | 100% | | 2025 | 31 | 40.5 months | 100% | ## Limits of the Records Acquittals and dismissals do not appear in the Commission's data, so the numbers describe only convicted people. The data also gives no facts about the weapons or circumstances in any case, and it cannot show why a sentence was set where it was. ### How We Counted Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Western District of Wisconsin (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Wisconsin West") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Firearms" (243). 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 Western District of Wisconsin, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-western-district-of-wisconsin/) (overview) - [Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Western District of Wisconsin, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-western-district-of-wisconsin/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Western District of Wisconsin, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-western-district-of-wisconsin/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Western District of Wisconsin, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-immigration-sentences-western-district-of-wisconsin/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Sexual Abuse Sentences in the Western District of Wisconsin, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-sexual-abuse-sentences-western-district-of-wisconsin/) (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.