> ## 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 2024 - URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-guideline-2m5-2-exportation-of-arms-munitions-or-military-equipment-fy2024/ - Published: 2026-11-04T10:25:58.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-04T10:25:58.000Z - Description: Fiscal year 2024 had 178 people sentenced under §2M5.2, the largest yearly count in the table for fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 160 (90%) received a prison term, and the median prison term was 24 months. - 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: FY2024 **In brief:** Fiscal year 2024 had 178 people sentenced under §2M5.2, the largest yearly count in the table for fiscal years 2016 to 2025\. 160 (90%) received a prison term, and the median prison term was 24 months. 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 178 people sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2024\. 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/). ## The Largest Yearly Count Under §2M5.2 The U.S. Sentencing Commission recorded 178 people sentenced in fiscal year 2024 whose primary guideline was §2M5.2\. The table below shows that no other fiscal year from 2016 to 2025 had more people in this group. The Guidelines Manual titles the guideline "Exportation of Arms, Munitions, or Military Equipment or Services Without Required Validated Export License." The Commission places all 178 cases in the National Defense offense type. The fiscal year ran from October 1, 2023 to September 30, 2024. ## Prison Terms and Probation 160 of the 178 people (90%) were sentenced to prison. 14 (8%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement. The median prison term was 24 months (2 years). A quarter of those sent to prison received 37 months or more, and a quarter received 12 months or less. The terms are those imposed, not time served. The 24-month median was lower than the 27-month median for all fiscal years 2016 to 2025 under this guideline. It was also lower than the 30-month median for everyone sentenced in federal court in 2024 under every guideline. ## Where Sentences Fell Against the Range 53 people (30%) were sentenced within the guideline range. 54 people (30%) were below the range at the government's request. 70 people (39%) were below the range without a government request. 1 person (less than 1%) was above it. In federal court as a whole in fiscal year 2024, 61,678 people were sentenced, and 46% were within the range. Within-range sentences were less common under §2M5.2\. The records do not give reasons for any individual sentence. ## One Trial Conviction and Many Pleas 177 people (more than 99%) pleaded guilty, and 1 person was convicted after a trial. The median prison term after a guilty plea was 24 months. The 1 person convicted at trial received 15 months, which is lower than the plea median. A single case does not describe trials generally. 73% of the guilty pleas had a written plea agreement, and 27% were straight pleas with no agreement. ## Release, Fines, Minimums, and Criminal History A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 1 of the 178 people (less than 1%). 145 people (81%) were ordered to serve supervised release, with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 18 people (10%), and restitution for 1 (less than 1%). 91% were in the lowest criminal history category, category I, and less than 1% were in the highest, category VI. ## Nearby Years and What Is Missing In fiscal year 2023, there were 168 people under §2M5.2, a median prison term of 28 months, and 35% within the range. In fiscal year 2025, there were 169 people, a median of 24 months, and 33% within the range. Across all years, 1,391 people were sentenced, 98% pleaded guilty, and 32% were within the range. Only people who were convicted and sentenced are in the data, so acquittals and dismissals are missing. The approved crosswalk has no close court-martial counterpart for this guideline, so this post gives federal numbers on their own. | 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% | ### How We Counted Everyone sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2024 whose primary sentencing guideline was §2M5.2 (178), 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](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 2023](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-guideline-2m5-2-exportation-of-arms-munitions-or-military-equipment-fy2023/) (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 2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-guideline-2m5-2-exportation-of-arms-munitions-or-military-equipment-fy2025/) (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.