§2A6.2 Stalking or Domestic Violence: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2021
In fiscal year 2021, 55 people were sentenced under §2A6.2, and the median prison term was 31 months (2.6 years), the lowest median of any year in the table. 21 sentences (38%) were within the guideline range, and 53 people (96%) pleaded guilty.
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In brief: In fiscal year 2021, 55 people were sentenced under §2A6.2, and the median prison term was 31 months (2.6 years), the lowest median of any year in the table. 21 sentences (38%) were within the guideline range, and 53 people (96%) pleaded guilty.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 55 people sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2021. 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.
Prison Terms in Fiscal Year 2021
53 of the 55 people (96%) were sentenced to prison, and 2 (4%) received probation only. The median prison term was 31 months. A quarter received 46 months or more, and a quarter received 21 months or less.
For all guidelines in fiscal year 2021, the median was 29 months. For §2A6.2 across fiscal years 2016 to 2025, it was 35 months. The terms are those imposed by the court, not the time served.
How Often Sentences Were Within the Range
21 of the 55 sentences (38%) were within the guideline range. 16 (29%) were below the range at the government's request, and 13 (24%) were below it without a government request. 5 sentences (9%) were above the range.
The within-range share for this guideline was 51% in fiscal year 2020 and 40% in fiscal year 2022. Across fiscal years 2016 to 2025 it was 42%. For all guidelines in fiscal year 2021, it was 43%.
A Trial Group of 2 People
53 people (96%) pleaded guilty, and 2 were convicted after a trial. 92% of the guilty pleas had a written plea agreement, and 8% were straight pleas.
After a guilty plea, the median prison term was 31 months. After a trial it was 70.5 months. A group of 2 people cannot support a conclusion about trial sentences in general.
Fines, Restitution, and Supervised Release
A fine was ordered for 8 people (15%), and restitution for 16 (29%).
52 people (95%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison. The median term was 36 months.
Mandatory Minimums and Criminal History
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 5 of the 55 people with that information recorded (9%).
45% were in criminal history category I, the lowest. 7% were in category VI, the highest.
Where These Cases Are Classified
The Sentencing Guidelines Manual titles §2A6.2 "Stalking or Domestic Violence," and the Commission lists these cases as Stalking/Harassing. Fiscal year 2021 ran from October 1, 2020 to September 30, 2021.
The table gives each year's count, median prison term, and plea rate.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 36 | 24 months | 92% |
| 2017 | 43 | 37 months | 88% |
| 2018 | 63 | 38.5 months | 92% |
| 2019 | 80 | 33 months | 98% |
| 2020 | 63 | 33 months | 92% |
| 2021 | 55 | 31 months | 96% |
| 2022 | 79 | 33 months | 91% |
| 2023 | 74 | 34 months | 92% |
| 2024 | 73 | 38 months | 92% |
| 2025 | 90 | 35.5 months | 89% |
What the Records Cannot Show
The primary guideline is the one that set the offense level for the most serious count in a case. Other counts are not described here. A mandatory minimum is a lowest prison term set by statute, and the data records only whether one applied. A year with 55 people is a modest count, so it is not a trend.
Only convicted and sentenced people are in the data. It has no acquittals or dismissals and no reasons for any sentence.
The approved crosswalk has no close court-martial counterpart for this guideline, so only federal numbers are given.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2021 whose primary sentencing guideline was §2A6.2 (55), U.S. Sentencing Commission individual data files. The primary guideline is the one that set the offense level for the most serious count.
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 (the background article)
- Federal Prosecution Analysis (all federal posts)
- How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built (sources and method)
- §2A6.2 Stalking or Domestic Violence: Federal Sentences, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- §2A6.2 Stalking or Domestic Violence: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2020 (previous or next fiscal year)
- §2A6.2 Stalking or Domestic Violence: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2022 (previous or next fiscal year)
- How Often Federal Judges Sentence Outside the Guideline Range
- Mandatory Minimums: How Many Federal Sentences Are Set by Congress
- 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.