> ## 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. # §2M5.2 Exportation of Arms, Munitions, or Military Equipment or Services Without Required Validated Export License: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2020 - URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-guideline-2m5-2-exportation-of-arms-munitions-or-military-equipment-fy2020/ - Published: 2026-11-04T10:25:55.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-04T10:25:55.000Z - Description: In fiscal year 2020, the median prison term under §2M5.2 was 28 months for 108 of the 119 people sentenced (91%). The median for everyone sentenced in federal court under every guideline that year was 18 months. 98% of the §2M5.2 group 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/) › [§2M5.2 Exportation of Arms, Munitions, or Military Equipment](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-guideline-2m5-2-exportation-of-arms-munitions-or-military-equipment/) › §2M5.2: FY2020 **In brief:** In fiscal year 2020, the median prison term under §2M5.2 was 28 months for 108 of the 119 people sentenced (91%). The median for everyone sentenced in federal court under every guideline that year was 18 months. 98% of the §2M5.2 group pleaded guilty. 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 119 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](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/). ## §2M5.2 and the Federal Median in Fiscal Year 2020 The U.S. Sentencing Commission counted 119 people sentenced in fiscal year 2020 with §2M5.2 as the primary guideline. 108 (91%) were sentenced to prison, and the median prison term was 28 months (2.3 years). For all 64,565 people sentenced in federal court that year under every guideline, the median prison term was 18 months. The median under §2M5.2 was higher than that overall figure. These groups contain different kinds of offenses, so the comparison shows a difference in the numbers and not a reason for it. A quarter of the §2M5.2 group received 43 months or more in prison, and a quarter received 12.8 months or less. The fiscal year ran from October 1, 2019 to September 30, 2020. ## The Guideline in Brief The Guidelines Manual titles §2M5.2 "Exportation of Arms, Munitions, or Military Equipment or Services Without Required Validated Export License." The Commission files all 119 cases under the National Defense offense type. A case is counted here when this guideline set the offense level for the most serious count. 9 people (8%) received probation only, meaning no prison and no other confinement. ## Plea Agreements and Trial Cases 117 of the 119 people (98%) pleaded guilty, and 2 were convicted after a trial. After a guilty plea, the median prison term was 28 months. After a trial, it was 60.5 months. With 2 people in the trial group, that number does not describe trials in general. Among those who pleaded guilty, 76% had a written plea agreement and 24% were straight pleas with no agreement. ## Position Against the Guideline Range 42 people (35%) were sentenced within the range. 25 people (21%) were below the range at the government's request. 51 people (43%) were below the range without a government request. 1 person (less than 1%) was above it. In federal court as a whole in 2020, 50% of sentences were within the range. Within-range sentences were less common under §2M5.2. ## Supervised Release, Fines, and Criminal History No mandatory minimum prison term applied to any of the 119 people (0%). 86 people (72%) were ordered to serve supervised release, with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 8 people (7%), and restitution for 2 (2%). 93% of the group was in the lowest criminal history category, category I, and 0% was in the highest, category VI. ## Other Years In fiscal year 2019, 141 people were sentenced under this guideline, the median prison term was 24 months, and 22% of sentences were within the range. In fiscal year 2021, 159 people were sentenced, the median was 30 months, and 44% were within the range. Across fiscal years 2016 to 2025, §2M5.2 covered 1,391 people, with 90% sent to prison and a median prison term of 27 months. The table lists each year. A count near 119 is small, and one year is not a trend. | Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty | | ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- | | 2016 | 100 | 32 months | 99% | | 2017 | 108 | 27 months | 96% | | 2018 | 131 | 30 months | 95% | | 2019 | 141 | 24 months | 99% | | 2020 | 119 | 28 months | 98% | | 2021 | 159 | 30 months | more than 99% | | 2022 | 118 | 25 months | 96% | | 2023 | 168 | 28 months | 99% | | 2024 | 178 | 24 months | more than 99% | | 2025 | 169 | 24 months | 99% | ## What the Data Does Not Cover People who were acquitted or whose cases were dismissed are not in the Commission's files. The approved crosswalk has no close court-martial counterpart for this guideline, so only federal numbers are reported. Prison terms are those imposed, not time served. ### How We Counted Everyone sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2020 whose primary sentencing guideline was §2M5.2 (119), 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. ## 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) - [§2M5.2 Exportation of Arms, Munitions, or Military Equipment or Services Without Required Validated Export License: Federal Sentences, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-guideline-2m5-2-exportation-of-arms-munitions-or-military-equipment/) (overview) - [§2M5.2 Exportation of Arms, Munitions, or Military Equipment or Services Without Required Validated Export License: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2019](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-guideline-2m5-2-exportation-of-arms-munitions-or-military-equipment-fy2019/) (previous or next fiscal year) - [§2M5.2 Exportation of Arms, Munitions, or Military Equipment or Services Without Required Validated Export License: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2021](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-guideline-2m5-2-exportation-of-arms-munitions-or-military-equipment-fy2021/) (previous or next fiscal year) - [How Often Federal Judges Sentence Outside the Guideline Range](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-sentences-outside-guideline-range/) - [Mandatory Minimums: How Many Federal Sentences Are Set by Congress](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-mandatory-minimum-sentences/) - [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.