> ## 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. # §2T3.1 Evading Import Duties or Restrictions (Smuggling): Federal Sentences, Fiscal Year 2022 - URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-guideline-2t3-1-evading-import-duties-or-restrictions-smuggling-fy2022/ - Published: 2026-11-04T10:59:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-04T10:59:00.000Z - Description: The 14 people sentenced in fiscal year 2022 under guideline §2T3.1 had a median prison term of 24 months among the 7 who were sent to prison. The other 7 (50%) received probation only. That median is the highest in the yearly table for this guideline, where the all-years median is 5.1 months. - Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart - Tags: Understanding Trends, Federal [Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [Federal Prosecution Analysis](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) › [§2T3.1 Evading Import Duties or Restrictions (Smuggling)](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-guideline-2t3-1-evading-import-duties-or-restrictions-smuggling/) › §2T3.1: FY2022 **In brief:** The 14 people sentenced in fiscal year 2022 under guideline §2T3.1 had a median prison term of 24 months among the 7 who were sent to prison. The other 7 (50%) received probation only. That median is the highest in the yearly table for this guideline, where the all-years median is 5.1 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 14 people sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2022\. 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/). ## 50% Went to Prison, and the Median Was 24 Months The U.S. Sentencing Commission counted 14 people in fiscal year 2022 whose primary guideline was §2T3.1\. The Sentencing Guidelines Manual titles this guideline "Evading Import Duties or Restrictions (Smuggling); Receiving or Trafficking in Smuggled Property." 7 of the 14 (50%) received a prison term, and 7 (50%) received probation only. For those sent to prison, the median term was 24 months, which is 2 years. A quarter received 27.5 months or more, and a quarter received 10.4 months or less. For all fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 52% of the 84 people sentenced under this guideline were sent to prison. ## Above the Guideline Range in 5 Cases 7 sentences (50%) were within the guideline range. 5 (36%) were above the range. 1 (7%) was below the range at the government's request, and 1 (7%) was below it without a government request. The share above the range is the notable feature of this year. In fiscal year 2022, 36% of the sentences were above the range. The within-range share for all years under this guideline is 48%, and for all guidelines in fiscal year 2022 it was 42%. The records do not say why those sentences were above the range. ## Pleas, Agreements, and Mandatory Minimums All 14 people (100%) pleaded guilty, and none were convicted after a trial. Every plea came with a written plea agreement. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 0 of the 14 people. Guilty pleas were 99% for all years under this guideline and 97% for everyone sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2022. ## Supervised Release, Fines, Restitution, and Criminal History 7 people (50%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison. The median term was 36 months. A fine was ordered for 3 people (21%), and restitution for 2 people (14%). All of the 14 people (100%) were in the lowest criminal history category, Category I. 0% were in the highest, Category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field. ## Fiscal Year 2022 in the Yearly Table Fiscal year 2022 has the largest group in the table, at 14 people. Other years range from 3 to 12 people, and fiscal year 2023 had 7 people with a median of 12 months. Medians in the other years run from 0 months to 12 months. For every guideline in fiscal year 2022, 64,142 people were sentenced, with a median prison term of 30 months. The §2T3.1 median was lower than that all-guideline median. The Commission files these cases under the offense type Tax, and fiscal year 2022 ran from October 1, 2021 to September 30, 2022. | Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty | | ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- | | 2016 | 10 | 5.3 months | 100% | | 2017 | 6 | 8 months | 5 of 6 | | 2018 | 8 | 0 months | 8 of 8 | | 2019 | 3 | 0 months | 3 of 3 | | 2020 | 9 | 0.8 months | 9 of 9 | | 2021 | 6 | 9.1 months | 6 of 6 | | 2022 | 14 | 24 months | 100% | | 2023 | 7 | 12 months | 7 of 7 | | 2024 | 9 | 1.9 months | 9 of 9 | | 2025 | 12 | 4.4 months | 100% | ## Limits of the Records The approved crosswalk lists no close court-martial counterpart for this guideline, so only federal numbers appear here. These records cover only people who were convicted and sentenced. They describe groups of sentences, not the facts of any case. A year with 14 people is a small group, and one year does not show a trend. ### How We Counted Everyone sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2022 whose primary sentencing guideline was §2T3.1 (14), 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) - [§2T3.1 Evading Import Duties or Restrictions (Smuggling): Federal Sentences, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-guideline-2t3-1-evading-import-duties-or-restrictions-smuggling/) (overview) - [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.