§2T1.1 Tax Evasion: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2017
Fiscal year 2017 had 437 people sentenced under §2T1.1 as the primary guideline, the highest yearly count in the sheet's table. 289 (66%) were sent to prison, and 91 (21%) received probation only. The median prison term was 15 months, and 88% of the group was ordered to pay restitution (386 people).
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In brief: Fiscal year 2017 had 437 people sentenced under §2T1.1 as the primary guideline, the highest yearly count in the sheet's table. 289 (66%) were sent to prison, and 91 (21%) received probation only. The median prison term was 15 months, and 88% of the group was ordered to pay restitution (386 people).
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 437 people sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2017. 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.
The Highest Yearly Count in the Table
The U.S. Sentencing Commission counted 437 people in fiscal year 2017 whose primary guideline was §2T1.1. The table below shows a lower count in every other year from fiscal year 2016 to fiscal year 2025.
The previous year had 414 people, and the next had 322. The records do not show a reason for any of these counts, and one year is not a trend. Fiscal year 2017 ran from October 1, 2016 to September 30, 2017.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 414 | 15 months | 93% |
| 2017 | 437 | 15 months | 91% |
| 2018 | 322 | 12 months | 93% |
| 2019 | 328 | 18 months | 94% |
| 2020 | 203 | 12 months | 91% |
| 2021 | 232 | 14.8 months | 96% |
| 2022 | 262 | 12 months | 94% |
| 2023 | 237 | 12 months | 91% |
| 2024 | 248 | 12 months | 93% |
| 2025 | 212 | 15 months | 96% |
Restitution Ordered for Most of the Group
Restitution was ordered for 386 of the 437 people (88%). A fine was ordered for 104 (24%).
The Guidelines Manual titles §2T1.1 "Tax Evasion; Willful Failure to File Return, Supply Information, or Pay Tax; Fraudulent or False Returns, Statements, or Other Documents." The Commission's offense type for these cases is Tax.
Who Went to Prison
A prison term went to 289 people (66%), and 91 (21%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement.
The median prison term was 15 months. A quarter of those sent to prison received 30 months or more, and a quarter received 6 months or less. Supervised release was ordered for 278 people (64%), with a median term of 24 months.
Trial Convictions and Their Sentences
A total of 396 of the 437 people (91%) pleaded guilty, and 41 were convicted after a trial. The median prison term after a guilty plea was 12 months, and after a trial it was 33 months. The trial figure is based on 36 people.
Among the guilty pleas, 96% had a written plea agreement, and 4% did not. The difference between the medians cannot be traced to a cause with these records.
The Position of Sentences Against the Range
The guideline range is calculated for each case under the Guidelines Manual. 28% of sentences (121) were within it. 46% (202) were below it without a government request, and 24% (105) were below it at the government's request. 2% (8) were above it.
The share within the range was 23% in fiscal year 2016 and 22% in fiscal year 2018. For all guidelines in fiscal year 2017, it was 49%.
Mandatory Minimums and Criminal History
A mandatory minimum applied to 6 people (1%). In the criminal history data, 83% were in the lowest category (category I) and 3% in the highest (category VI). Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Series and All-Guidelines Numbers
Across fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 2,895 people were sentenced under §2T1.1. 63% went to prison, the median prison term was 14 months, 93% pleaded guilty, and 24% were within the range.
In fiscal year 2017, all guidelines together covered 66,873 people, with a median prison term of 24 months and a guilty plea share of 97%. The §2T1.1 median was lower.
Limits of This Data
Only people who were convicted and sentenced are counted. The records do not show how much tax was involved, and no close court-martial counterpart exists for this guideline in the site's crosswalk. This post reports federal numbers alone.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2017 whose primary sentencing guideline was §2T1.1 (437), 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)
- §2T1.1 Tax Evasion: Federal Sentences, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- §2T1.1 Tax Evasion: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2016 (previous or next fiscal year)
- §2T1.1 Tax Evasion: Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2018 (previous or next fiscal year)
- 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.