> ## 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 Forgery, Counterfeiting, and Copyright Sentences in the Eastern District of Tennessee, FY2016–2025 - URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-forgery-counter-copyright-sentences-eastern-district-of-tennessee/ - Published: 2026-11-04T10:35:47.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-04T10:35:47.000Z - Description: 22 people were sentenced for forgery, counterfeiting, or copyright offenses in the Eastern District of Tennessee in fiscal years 2016 to 2024, and every one was sentenced under the counterfeit currency guideline. 18 (82%) received a prison term, with a median of 22.5 months, compared with 17.6 month - 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 Eastern District of Tennessee, FY20](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-eastern-district-of-tennessee/) › Forgery, Counterfeiting, and Copyright: Eastern District of Tennessee **In brief:** 22 people were sentenced for forgery, counterfeiting, or copyright offenses in the Eastern District of Tennessee in fiscal years 2016 to 2024, and every one was sentenced under the counterfeit currency guideline. 18 (82%) received a prison term, with a median of 22.5 months, compared with 17.6 months for 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 22 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/). ## One Guideline Covered Every Case The Commission's "Forgery/Counter/Copyright" offense type usually includes counterfeit goods and copyright cases. In this district, all 22 people had the same primary guideline: §2B5.1 (Offenses Involving Counterfeit Bearer Obligations of the United States). The 22 people are less than 1% of the 6,452 people sentenced in the district from fiscal year 2016 to fiscal year 2025. ## Prison Terms Compared With All Districts 18 of the 22 (82%) received a prison term, and 3 (14%) received probation only. In all 94 districts, 77% of the 1,994 people in this category were sent to prison. The median prison term was 22.5 months. A quarter received 32.8 months or more, and a quarter received 11.3 months or less. The all-districts median was 17.6 months, which is lower. The median for all offenses in the district was 70 months, which is higher. ## Pleas and Plea Agreements 22 of 22 (100%) pleaded guilty, and none was convicted after a trial. Among guilty pleas, 73% had a written plea agreement and 27% were straight pleas with no agreement. Guilty pleas were 98% for all districts in this category and 98% for all offenses in the district. ## Sentences Against the Guideline Range The guideline range is the sentence range calculated under the federal Sentencing Guidelines. 14 sentences (64%) were within the range. 4 (18%) were below the range at the government's request, and 3 (14%) were below it without a government request. 1 (5%) was above the range. For all districts, 47% of sentences in this category were within the range. For all offenses in the district, the share was 48%. The share here is higher than both. No one had a mandatory minimum prison term recorded. ## Restitution, Fines, and Supervision Restitution was ordered for 13 people (59%), and a fine for 2 (9%). 18 people (82%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, with a median term of 36 months. In criminal history terms, 18% were in category I, the lowest, and 14% were in category VI, the highest. ## Counts by Fiscal Year Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 account for 18 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 account for 4\. Fiscal year 2016 alone had 10 people in the table, and later years had 1 or 2\. Fewer sentences in recent years does not tell why, and the table does not show a trend in prison terms: medians run from 10 months to 34 months across groups of 1 to 10 people. | Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty | | ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- | | 2016 | 10 | 15 months | 100% | | 2017 | 1 | 12 months | 1 of 1 | | 2018 | 4 | 30.5 months | 4 of 4 | | 2019 | 3 | 33 months | 3 of 3 | | 2021 | 1 | 10 months | 1 of 1 | | 2023 | 1 | 34 months | 1 of 1 | | 2024 | 2 | 29.5 months | 2 of 2 | ## What the Records Leave Out Only people convicted and sentenced appear. Acquittals and dismissals are not in the data. Prison terms are those imposed, not time served, and the records give no facts about any case. ### How We Counted Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Eastern District of Tennessee (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Tennessee East") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Forgery/Counter/Copyright" (22). 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 Eastern District of Tennessee, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-eastern-district-of-tennessee/) (overview) - [Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Eastern District of Tennessee, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-eastern-district-of-tennessee/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Firearms Sentences in the Eastern District of Tennessee, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-eastern-district-of-tennessee/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Eastern District of Tennessee, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-eastern-district-of-tennessee/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Money Laundering Sentences in the Eastern District of Tennessee, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-money-laundering-sentences-eastern-district-of-tennessee/) (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.