> ## 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. # §2D3.1 Regulatory Offenses Involving Registration Numbers: Federal Sentences, FY2016–2025 - URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-guideline-2d3-1-regulatory-offenses-involving-registration-numbers/ - Published: 2026-11-03T01:40:14.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-03T01:40:14.000Z - Description: Of 32 people sentenced under §2D3.1 in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 22 (69%) received probation only, and 7 (22%) received a prison term. The median prison term was 4 months. 31 of the 32 pleaded guilty. - Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart - Tags: Understanding Trends, Federal [Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [Federal Prosecution Analysis](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) › §2D3.1 **In brief:** Of 32 people sentenced under §2D3.1 in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 22 (69%) received probation only, and 7 (22%) received a prison term. The median prison term was 4 months. 31 of the 32 pleaded guilty. Updated November 2, 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 32 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/). ## Mostly Probation, With Short Prison Terms Probation only, with no prison or other confinement, went to 22 of 32 people (69%). Prison went to 7 (22%). The median prison term for those 7 was 4 months. A quarter received 11.5 months or more, and a quarter received 1.6 months or less. Terms are those imposed, not time served. The median is the middle prison term when all terms are listed from shortest to longest. With only 7 terms, it moves easily with one sentence. ## What Guideline §2D3.1 Covers The Guidelines Manual titles §2D3.1 "Regulatory Offenses Involving Registration Numbers," followed by a second subject about unlawful advertising of certain controlled substances, and attempts or conspiracies. The first part of the title points to regulatory offenses tied to registration numbers. The Sentencing Commission files all 32 cases under the offense type Other. A case is counted when §2D3.1 was the primary guideline. ## Guilty Pleas and One Trial One person was convicted after a trial, and 31 of 32 (97%) pleaded guilty. All of the guilty pleas had a written plea agreement: 100%, with 0% straight pleas. The median prison term after a guilty plea was 3.5 months. After the one trial it was 5 months. One case cannot support a comparison. Because 31 of 32 pleaded guilty, nearly every sentence in this group followed a guilty plea. ## Range and Mandatory Minimums Sentences within the guideline range were 88% (28). Sentences above the range were 13% (4). None were below the range, either with or without a government request. No mandatory minimum prison term applied to anyone. The sentences in this group were mostly within the range and never below it. ## Supervised Release, Fines, and Restitution Supervised release after prison was ordered for 7 people (22%), with a median term of 12 months. A fine was ordered for 15 (47%), and restitution for 5 (16%). On criminal history, 94% were in the lowest category, category I, and 0% were in the highest, category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field. ## Changes Across the Years Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 had 11 people with a median prison term of 2.5 months. Fiscal years 2020 to 2025 had 21 people with a median prison term of 4 months. The later median is higher, but both rest on few prison sentences. In the table, most years show "n/a" for the median. Only fiscal years 2019 and 2024 show one. Fiscal year 2024 had 10 people, the most of any year. Fines were ordered more often than prison in this group: a fine for 47% and prison for 22%. | Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty | | ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- | | 2016 | 2 | n/a | 2 of 2 | | 2017 | 2 | n/a | 2 of 2 | | 2018 | 2 | n/a | 2 of 2 | | 2019 | 5 | 2.5 months | 4 of 5 | | 2020 | 3 | n/a | 3 of 3 | | 2021 | 2 | n/a | 2 of 2 | | 2022 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 | | 2023 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 | | 2024 | 10 | 4 months | 100% | | 2025 | 4 | n/a | 4 of 4 | ## Limits The approved crosswalk has no close court-martial counterpart for this guideline, so only federal numbers appear. The data counts only people convicted and sentenced, and so leaves out acquittals and dismissals. ### How We Counted Everyone sentenced in federal court in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose primary sentencing guideline was §2D3.1 (32), from the U.S. Sentencing Commission's 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. ## 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) - [§2D1.1 Unlawful Manufacturing, Importing, Exporting, or Trafficking (Including Possession with Intent to Commit These Offenses): Federal Sentences, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-guideline-2d1-1-unlawful-manufacturing-importing-exporting-or-trafficking-including/) (same guideline chapter part) - [§2D1.2 Drug Offenses Occurring Near Protected Locations or Involving Underage or Pregnant Individuals: Federal Sentences, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-guideline-2d1-2-drug-offenses-occurring-near-protected-locations-or/) (same guideline chapter part) - [§2D2.1 Unlawful Possession: Federal Sentences, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-guideline-2d2-1-unlawful-possession/) (same guideline chapter part) - [§2D2.2 Acquiring a Controlled Substance by Forgery, Fraud, Deception, or Subterfuge: Federal Sentences, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-guideline-2d2-2-acquiring-a-controlled-substance-by-forgery-fraud/) (same guideline chapter part) - [§2D1.11 Unlawfully Distributing, Importing, Exporting or Possessing a Listed Chemical: Federal Sentences, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-guideline-2d1-11-unlawfully-distributing-importing-exporting-or-possessing-a/) (same guideline chapter part) - [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.