> ## 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. # §2S1.3 Structuring Transactions to Evade Reporting Requirements: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2018 - URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-guideline-2s1-3-structuring-transactions-to-evade-reporting-requirements-fy2018/ - Published: 2026-11-04T10:24:43.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-04T10:24:43.000Z - Description: Federal courts sentenced 152 people in fiscal year 2018 in cases where §2S1.3 was the primary guideline. 115 of them (76%) were sentenced to prison, with a median prison term of 12 months, and 29 (19%) received probation only. - Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart - Tags: Understanding Trends, Federal [Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [Federal Prosecution Analysis](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) › [§2S1.3 Structuring Transactions to Evade Reporting Requireme](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-guideline-2s1-3-structuring-transactions-to-evade-reporting-requirements/) › §2S1.3: FY2018 **In brief:** Federal courts sentenced 152 people in fiscal year 2018 in cases where §2S1.3 was the primary guideline. 115 of them (76%) were sentenced to prison, with a median prison term of 12 months, and 29 (19%) received probation only. 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 152 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](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/). ## Prison Terms Under §2S1.3 in Fiscal Year 2018 The median prison term was 12 months for the 115 people who were sentenced to prison. The spread was wide. A quarter received 19.2 months or more, and a quarter received 5 months or less. 29 people (19%) received probation only. Some people received a sentence that fits neither group, so these shares do not cover everyone. No mandatory minimum prison term applied to any of the 152 people. ## The Offenses the Guideline Covers §2S1.3 is titled "Structuring Transactions to Evade Reporting Requirements; Failure to Report Cash or Monetary Transactions; Failure to File Currency and Monetary Instrument Report; Knowingly Filing False Reports; Bulk Cash Smuggling; Establishing or Maintaining Prohibited Accounts." The Sentencing Commission classes all 152 cases as Money Laundering. The primary guideline is the one that set the offense level for the most serious count. Fiscal year 2018 began on October 1, 2017 and ended on September 30, 2018\. Only people who were convicted appear in the figures. ## Pleas, Agreements, and Trials 149 of the 152 (98%) pleaded guilty. The other 3 were convicted after a trial. 91% of the guilty pleas had a written plea agreement, and 9% had none. After a guilty plea, the median prison term was 12 months. After a trial, it was 26.5 months. Only 2 trial convictions led to prison, so the trial figure rests on a small base. ## Where Sentences Fell Against the Range 43% of the 152 sentences (65 people) were within the guideline range. 42 people (28%) were below it at the government's request, and 41 (27%) were below it with no such request. 4 (3%) were above it. Across every guideline in fiscal year 2018, 51% of sentences were within the range. In fiscal year 2017, 37% of §2S1.3 sentences were within the range, and in fiscal year 2019, the figure was 41%. ## Supervised Release, Fines, and Restitution 96 people (63%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, and the median term was 36 months. Courts ordered a fine for 29 (19%) and restitution for 14 (9%). The lowest criminal history category held 86% of the group, and less than 1% were in the highest. Military court records do not include a criminal history field. ## Federal Totals and the 2016 to 2025 Record In fiscal year 2018, 69,425 people were sentenced across all guidelines. The median prison term was 24 months and 97% pleaded guilty. The §2S1.3 median was lower. For fiscal years 2016 to 2025 combined, 1,782 people were sentenced under §2S1.3\. 75% went to prison, the median prison term was 10 months, 98% pleaded guilty, and 41% were within the range. Fiscal year 2017 had 174 people with a median of 12 months. Fiscal year 2019 had 177 people with a median of 10 months. The table shows all years. | Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty | | ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- | | 2016 | 257 | 12 months | 97% | | 2017 | 174 | 12 months | 99% | | 2018 | 152 | 12 months | 98% | | 2019 | 177 | 10 months | 98% | | 2020 | 113 | 10 months | more than 99% | | 2021 | 190 | 12 months | 99% | | 2022 | 185 | 12 months | 98% | | 2023 | 172 | 9.5 months | more than 99% | | 2024 | 177 | 6.7 months | 98% | | 2025 | 185 | 8 months | 98% | ## What the Records Leave Out No close court-martial counterpart appears in the approved crosswalk, so this post presents federal numbers alone. The data does not describe the conduct in any case, and it does not explain the reason for any sentence. ### How We Counted Everyone sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2018 whose primary sentencing guideline was §2S1.3 (152), 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) - [§2S1.3 Structuring Transactions to Evade Reporting Requirements: Federal Sentences, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-guideline-2s1-3-structuring-transactions-to-evade-reporting-requirements/) (overview) - [§2S1.3 Structuring Transactions to Evade Reporting Requirements: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2017](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-guideline-2s1-3-structuring-transactions-to-evade-reporting-requirements-fy2017/) (previous or next fiscal year) - [§2S1.3 Structuring Transactions to Evade Reporting Requirements: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2019](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-guideline-2s1-3-structuring-transactions-to-evade-reporting-requirements-fy2019/) (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.