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# Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Eastern District of California, FY2016–2025
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-eastern-district-of-california/
- Published: 2026-11-04T11:08:11.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-04T11:08:11.000Z
- Description: 659 people were sentenced for fraud, theft, and embezzlement in the Eastern District of California in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 85% received a prison term, with a median of 30 months, compared with 20 months across all 94 federal districts. Restitution was ordered for 84%.
- 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 California, FY2](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-eastern-district-of-california/) › Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement: Eastern District of California

**In brief:** 659 people were sentenced for fraud, theft, and embezzlement in the Eastern District of California in fiscal years 2016 to 2025\. 85% received a prison term, with a median of 30 months, compared with 20 months across all 94 federal districts. Restitution was ordered for 84%.

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 659 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/).

## Restitution Was Ordered for 84%

Restitution, which is money a court orders paid back to victims, was ordered for 551 of the 659 people (84%). A fine was ordered for 64 (10%).

"Fraud/Theft/Embezzlement" is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's offense type. Nearly every case used one primary guideline: §2B1.1 (Larceny, Embezzlement, and Other Forms of Theft), with 619 people. §2B1.5 (Theft of, Damage to, or Destruction of, Cultural Heritage Resources) had 5.

These cases were 14% of the 4,546 people sentenced in the district.

## Prison Terms and Probation

557 of the 659 people (85%) received a prison term, and 78 (12%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement. Among those sent to prison, the median prison term was 30 months, or 2.5 years. A quarter received 53 months or more, and a quarter received 12 months or less.

In all districts, this offense type had 58,502 people, 73% sent to prison, and a median of 20 months. This district sent a larger share to prison and had a higher median. For all offenses in this district, the median was 48 months.

## Sentences Below the Range, With and Without a Government Request

43% of sentences (275 people) were within the guideline range. 29% (187 people) were below the range without a government request, and 27% (176 people) were below it at the government's request. Less than 1% (6 people) were above the range.

Across all districts, 45% of sentences for this offense type were within the range. That is about the same as the 43% here. For all offenses in this district, the figure was 40%.

## Trials Were Less Common but Carried Longer Terms

607 of 659 people (92%) pleaded guilty, and 52 were convicted after a trial. The median prison term was 29 months after a guilty plea and 58.5 months after a trial, based on 50 people sent to prison.

95% of the guilty pleas had a written plea agreement, and 5% were straight pleas. Across all districts, 96% of people in this offense type pleaded guilty, so the plea share here was lower.

## Mandatory Minimums, Supervised Release, and Criminal History

A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 138 of the 653 people with that information recorded (21%). 550 people (83%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, with a median term of 36 months.

63% of the people were in the lowest criminal history category I, and 15% were in the highest (VI). Court-martial records have no criminal history field.

## Counts by Year

352 people were sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2019, and 307 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025\. The yearly count in the table was 130 in 2016 and 35 in 2021.

Yearly medians range from 24 months to 41 months. The table reports what happened in each year, and the records do not show why the counts or medians changed.

| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
| ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- |
| 2016        | 130              | 25 months     | 83%            |
| 2017        | 70               | 36 months     | 93%            |
| 2018        | 88               | 33 months     | 92%            |
| 2019        | 64               | 37 months     | 92%            |
| 2020        | 49               | 24 months     | 88%            |
| 2021        | 35               | 29 months     | 100%           |
| 2022        | 53               | 26 months     | 96%            |
| 2023        | 55               | 41 months     | 100%           |
| 2024        | 65               | 24 months     | 97%            |
| 2025        | 50               | 33 months     | 94%            |

## What the Records Do Not Show

Acquittals and dismissals never enter the Commission's data, which lists only people who were convicted and sentenced.

Each prison term shown is the sentence imposed by the court. Time actually served is not part of this record.

Beale AFB, Edwards AFB, and Travis AFB sit inside the district's boundaries. Military courts try courts-martial, so none of those cases appear in these totals.

### How We Counted

Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Eastern District of California (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "California East") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Fraud/Theft/Embezzlement" (659). 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 Eastern District of California, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-eastern-district-of-california/) (overview)
- [Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Eastern District of California, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-eastern-district-of-california/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Firearms Sentences in the Eastern District of California, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-eastern-district-of-california/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Eastern District of California, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-immigration-sentences-eastern-district-of-california/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Child Pornography Sentences in the Eastern District of California, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-child-pornography-sentences-eastern-district-of-california/) (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.