Federal Forgery, Counterfeiting, and Copyright Sentences in the Western District of New York, FY2016–2025
17 people were sentenced in the Western District of New York under the offense type "Forgery/Counter/Copyright" in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 10 of them (59%) received a prison term, with a median of 13 months. In all 94 federal districts, the median for this offense type was 17.6 months.
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the Western District of New York, FY201 › Forgery, Counterfeiting, and Copyright: Western District of New York
In brief: 17 people were sentenced in the Western District of New York under the offense type "Forgery/Counter/Copyright" in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 10 of them (59%) received a prison term, with a median of 13 months. In all 94 federal districts, the median for this offense type was 17.6 months.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 17 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.
Copyright and Counterfeit Money Cases
The U.S. Sentencing Commission groups forgery, counterfeiting, and copyright offenses into one offense type. The most common primary guidelines here were §2B5.3 (Criminal Infringement of Copyright or Trademark), with 10 people, and §2B5.1 (Offenses Involving Counterfeit Bearer Obligations of the United States), with 7 people.
These cases were less than 1% of the 4,205 people sentenced in the district in fiscal years 2016 to 2025.
Prison and Probation
10 of the 17 people (59%) received a prison term. 5 (29%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement. Across all 94 districts, 77% of people in this offense type were sent to prison, so the share here was lower.
Among those sent to prison, the median prison term was 13 months. A quarter received 24 months or more, and a quarter received 0 months or less. The district's median for all offenses was 41 months. Prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served.
Most Sentences Were Below the Guideline Range
7 people (41%) were sentenced below the guideline range without a government request, and 6 (35%) were below it at the government's request. 4 (24%) were within the range, and none were above it.
In all 94 districts, 47% of sentences for this offense type were within the range. For all offenses in the district, 42% were within it. Within-range sentences were therefore less common here than in either comparison group.
Pleas and Mandatory Minimums
All 17 people (100%) pleaded guilty, and none were convicted after a trial. 94% of the pleas had a written plea agreement, and 6% were straight pleas with no agreement.
No mandatory minimum prison term applied to anyone in this group (0%). Across all 94 districts, 98% of people in this offense type pleaded guilty.
Supervised Release, Fines, and Restitution
8 people (47%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, with a median term of 30 months. Restitution was ordered for 9 people (53%), and a fine for 2 (12%).
On criminal history, 71% were in the lowest category, and 12% were in the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
More Cases Early in the Period
Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 had 13 people. Fiscal years 2020 to 2025 had 4 people. The table lists only the fiscal years with cases, and each has between 1 and 6 people.
Medians in the table range from 0 months in fiscal years 2017 and 2018 to 24 months in fiscal years 2024 and 2025. The records cannot show whether the smaller count in later years reflects fewer cases, different charging, or something else.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 6 | 7 months | 6 of 6 |
| 2017 | 2 | 0 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2018 | 3 | 0 months | 3 of 3 |
| 2019 | 2 | 18 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2020 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
| 2024 | 2 | 24 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2025 | 1 | 24 months | 1 of 1 |
Limits of the Records
The data includes only people who were convicted and sentenced, so acquittals and dismissals are not in it. The records do not show the value of the goods or money involved, or the facts of any case.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Western District of New York (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "New York West") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Forgery/Counter/Copyright" (17). 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 (the background article)
- Federal Prosecution Analysis (all federal posts)
- How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built (sources and method)
- Federal Sentences in the Western District of New York, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Western District of New York, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Western District of New York, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Western District of New York, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Western District of New York, 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.