§2B3.1 Robbery: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2020
In fiscal year 2020, 1,297 people were sentenced under §2B3.1, which is fewer than the 1,805 in fiscal year 2019. The median prison term was 87 months, and 3 people received a life sentence. Sentences were within the guideline range for 43%.
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In brief: In fiscal year 2020, 1,297 people were sentenced under §2B3.1, which is fewer than the 1,805 in fiscal year 2019. The median prison term was 87 months, and 3 people received a life sentence. Sentences were within the guideline range for 43%.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 1,297 people sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2020. 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.
A Smaller Group Than the Year Before
The U.S. Sentencing Commission counted 1,297 people in the year that ran from October 1, 2019 to September 30, 2020. The previous year had 1,805 people, and the next year, 2021, had 1,290.
The records show the counts but not the reasons for them. The Commission lists these cases under its Robbery offense type, and only people who were convicted and sentenced are included.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 1,582 | 87 months | 94% |
| 2017 | 1,544 | 84 months | 94% |
| 2018 | 1,691 | 90 months | 95% |
| 2019 | 1,805 | 95.5 months | 95% |
| 2020 | 1,297 | 87 months | 95% |
| 2021 | 1,290 | 93 months | 96% |
| 2022 | 1,424 | 97 months | 95% |
| 2023 | 1,490 | 96 months | 95% |
| 2024 | 1,305 | 96 months | 94% |
| 2025 | 1,233 | 92 months | 95% |
Prison Terms and Life Sentences
Prison went to 1,277 people (98%). Probation only, with no prison or other confinement, went to 11 (less than 1%). A life sentence went to 3 people.
The median prison term for those sent to prison was 87 months, or 7.2 years. A quarter received 141 months or more, and a quarter received 52 months or less. The year before had a median of 95.5 months, and the year after had a median of 93 months.
Within the Range More Often Than in Neighboring Years
A sentence within the guideline range went to 43% (551), which is higher than 39% in both fiscal year 2019 and fiscal year 2021.
Below the range at the government's request: 25% (330). Below the range without a government request: 27% (350). Above the range: 5% (65). Range information was available for 1,296 people.
Guilty Pleas, Trials, and Plea Agreements
There were 1,227 guilty pleas (95%) and 70 convictions after a trial. After a plea, the median prison term was 84 months. After a trial it was 229 months, based on 70 people sent to prison.
A written plea agreement was present in 86% of the guilty pleas, and 14% were straight pleas. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 500 of the 1,297 people with that information (39%).
Supervised Release, Restitution, and Criminal History
Supervised release is a period of supervision after prison. It was ordered for 1,269 people (98%), and the median term was 36 months. Restitution, which is payment to a victim, was ordered for 890 people (69%), and a fine for 24 (2%).
In criminal history, 26% were in category I, the lowest, and 19% in category VI, the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Longer Context and Limits
The Manual title is "Robbery." For fiscal years 2016 to 2025, the guideline covers 14,661 people, with a median of 92 months and 40% within the range. For all guidelines in fiscal year 2020, 64,565 people were sentenced, with a median of 18 months and 50% within the range.
The approved crosswalk has no close court-martial counterpart, so this post reports federal numbers alone. The data does not give the facts of any case, and terms are as imposed, not as served.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2020 whose primary sentencing guideline was §2B3.1 (1,297), 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)
- §2B3.1 Robbery: Federal Sentences, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- §2B3.1 Robbery: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2019 (previous or next fiscal year)
- §2B3.1 Robbery: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2021 (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.