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# Federal Forgery, Counterfeiting, and Copyright Sentences in the District of Montana, FY2016–2025
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-forgery-counter-copyright-sentences-district-of-montana/
- Published: 2026-11-04T11:08:40.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-04T11:08:40.000Z
- Description: The District of Montana sentenced 19 people for forgery, counterfeiting, or copyright offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2022, and all 19 were sentenced under one guideline, for counterfeit bearer obligations of the United States. The median prison term was 17 months, about the same as the 17.6 months
- 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 District of Montana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-district-of-montana/) › Forgery, Counterfeiting, and Copyright: District of Montana

**In brief:** The District of Montana sentenced 19 people for forgery, counterfeiting, or copyright offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2022, and all 19 were sentenced under one guideline, for counterfeit bearer obligations of the United States. The median prison term was 17 months, about the same as the 17.6 months for this offense type in all 94 districts.

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 19 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/).

## A Single Guideline and a Short Time Span

Every case in this group used §2B5.1 (Offenses Involving Counterfeit Bearer Obligations of the United States). The Commission's offense type is "Forgery/Counter/Copyright." The Montana records for it run from fiscal year 2016 to fiscal year 2022.

Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 account for 17 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 account for 2 people. The group was less than 1% of the 3,524 people sentenced in the district.

## Criminal History Was Concentrated in the Highest Category

In criminal history category I, the lowest, 5% of the group were placed. In category VI, the highest, 37% were placed. Court-martial records have no criminal history field, so there is no military comparison.

A larger share of this group was in the highest category than in the lowest. The records do not show what prior cases lie behind those placements.

## Prison Terms

Of the 19 people, 16 (84%) received a prison term, and 2 (11%) received probation only. The median prison term was 17 months. A quarter received 26.2 months or more, and a quarter received 14.8 months or less.

In all districts, 1,994 people were sentenced for this offense type, and 77% were sent to prison. The district median for all offenses was 40 months.

## Guideline Range and Pleas

A total of 12 of the 19 sentences (63%) were within the guideline range, compared with 47% nationally and 33% for all Montana offenses. A total of 5 (26%) were below the range at the government's request, and 2 (11%) were below it without that request. None was above the range.

All 19 people pleaded guilty, and none went to trial. A written plea agreement covered 74% of the pleas, and 26% were straight pleas. No mandatory minimum applied.

## Restitution and Supervised Release

Restitution was ordered for 16 people (84%), and no fine was ordered. Supervised release was ordered for 16 people (84%), and the median term was 36 months.

## Counts by Fiscal Year

The table lists 1 to 6 people per year. The 2016 median of 35 months comes from 6 people, and the 2018 median of 17 months also comes from 6\. The table has no rows for 2021, and the 2017 median shows n/a. With counts this small, the yearly medians do not show a trend.

| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
| ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- |
| 2016        | 6                | 35 months     | 6 of 6         |
| 2017        | 1                | n/a           | 1 of 1         |
| 2018        | 6                | 17 months     | 6 of 6         |
| 2019        | 4                | 16 months     | 4 of 4         |
| 2020        | 1                | 15 months     | 1 of 1         |
| 2022        | 1                | 12 months     | 1 of 1         |

## Limits of This Data

Malmstrom AFB, Montana, is in the district. Courts-martial are tried in military courts and are not counted here.

Only people who were convicted and sentenced are included. Prison terms are imposed terms, not time served. The records do not show the amounts involved in any case.

### How We Counted

Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of Montana (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Montana") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Forgery/Counter/Copyright" (19). 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.

## 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 District of Montana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-district-of-montana/) (overview)
- [Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of Montana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-district-of-montana/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of Montana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-district-of-montana/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of Montana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-district-of-montana/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Assault Sentences in the District of Montana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-assault-sentences-district-of-montana/) (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.