§2M6.1 Unlawful Activity Involving Nuclear Material, Weapons, or Facilities, Biological Agents, Toxins, or Delivery Systems, Chemical Weapons, or Other Weapons of Mass Destruction: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2018
In fiscal year 2018, 10 people were sentenced in federal court with §2M6.1 as the primary guideline. 8 of them received a prison term, and the median prison term was 157.5 months. The group is small, so the numbers describe those 10 people and do not show a trend.
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › §2M6.1 Unlawful Activity Involving Nuclear Material, Weapons › §2M6.1: FY2018
In brief: In fiscal year 2018, 10 people were sentenced in federal court with §2M6.1 as the primary guideline. 8 of them received a prison term, and the median prison term was 157.5 months. The group is small, so the numbers describe those 10 people and do not show a trend.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 10 people sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2018. 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.
Who Was Sentenced Under §2M6.1 in Fiscal Year 2018?
The U.S. Sentencing Commission counted 10 people sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2018 whose primary guideline was §2M6.1. The Guidelines Manual titles this guideline "Unlawful Activity Involving Nuclear Material, Weapons, or Facilities, Biological Agents, Toxins, or Delivery Systems, Chemical Weapons, or Other Weapons of Mass Destruction; Attempt or Conspiracy".
The primary guideline is the one that set the offense level for the most serious count. The Commission places all 10 cases in its National Defense offense type. The fiscal year ran from October 1, 2017 to September 30, 2018.
Prison Terms and Probation
8 of the 10 (80%) received a prison term. 2 (20%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement. 1 person received a life sentence.
Among those sent to prison, the median prison term was 157.5 months (13.1 years). A quarter received 297.5 months or more, and a quarter received 83.5 months or less. These are the terms imposed, not time served.
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 2 of the 10 people with that information recorded (20%).
Guilty Pleas Compared With Trials
8 of 10 (80%) pleaded guilty, and 2 were convicted after a trial. All 8 who pleaded guilty had a written plea agreement.
The median prison term after a guilty plea was 115.5 months. After a trial it was 470 months. The trial figure is based on only 2 people, so it cannot be treated as a typical result for a trial under this guideline.
How Sentences Compared With the Guideline Range
For all 10 people, the records show where the sentence fell against the guideline range. 5 (50%) were sentenced within the range. 3 (30%) were below the range at the government's request, and 2 (20%) were below the range without a government request. None was above the range.
Supervised release after prison was ordered for 8 (80%), with a median term of 36 months. 1 person (10%) received supervised release for life. A fine was ordered for 1 (10%), and restitution for 3 (30%).
On criminal history, 50% were in the lowest category I and 40% were in the highest category VI.
Context From Other Years and Other Guidelines
Across fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 38 people were sentenced under §2M6.1. 95% were sent to prison, the median prison term was 120 months, 84% pleaded guilty, and 42% were sentenced within the guideline range.
For every guideline in fiscal year 2018, 69,425 people were sentenced. Their median prison term was 24 months, 97% pleaded guilty, and 51% were sentenced within the guideline range. The median prison term for §2M6.1 in 2018 was higher than that figure, and the guilty plea rate was lower.
The yearly table shows how small the counts are. They range from 2 people in fiscal year 2020 to 10 people in fiscal year 2018, and the table lists no row for several fiscal years.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 3 | 97 months | 2 of 3 |
| 2017 | 5 | 360 months | 3 of 5 |
| 2018 | 10 | 157.5 months | 80% |
| 2019 | 6 | 180 months | 6 of 6 |
| 2020 | 2 | 60 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2021 | 4 | 162 months | 3 of 4 |
| 2023 | 3 | 135 months | 3 of 3 |
| 2025 | 5 | 29 months | 5 of 5 |
What These Numbers Cannot Show
The Commission's data covers only people who were convicted and sentenced. Acquittals and dismissals are not in it.
There is no close court-martial counterpart for this guideline in the approved crosswalk, so this post reports the federal numbers on their own. With 10 people, a change of one case moves a percentage by 10 points, and the records do not explain the facts of any case.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2018 whose primary sentencing guideline was §2M6.1 (10), 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)
- §2M6.1 Unlawful Activity Involving Nuclear Material, Weapons, or Facilities, Biological Agents, Toxins, or Delivery Systems, Chemical Weapons, or Other Weapons of Mass Destruction: Federal Sentences, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- 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.