Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Northern District of Florida, FY2016–2025
Immigration cases were 12% of the 2,768 people sentenced in the Northern District of Florida in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Of the 321 people sentenced for immigration offenses, 320 received a prison term, and the median was 3.9 months. Across all 94 federal districts the median for this offense type
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the Northern District of Florida, FY201 › Immigration Offense: Northern District of Florida
In brief: Immigration cases were 12% of the 2,768 people sentenced in the Northern District of Florida in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Of the 321 people sentenced for immigration offenses, 320 received a prison term, and the median was 3.9 months. Across all 94 federal districts the median for this offense type was 7 months.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 321 people sentenced in federal court in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 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.
Short Prison Terms for Nearly Everyone
The U.S. Sentencing Commission counted 321 people in the "Immigration" offense type for this district. 320 (more than 99%) received a prison term, and 1 (less than 1%) received probation only.
The median prison term was 3.9 months. A quarter received 8 months or more, and a quarter received 1.5 months or less.
For all 94 districts, this offense type had 217,838 people, 95% of whom were sent to prison. The national median was 7 months, so the median in this district is lower. The median for all offenses in the district was 48 months.
Which Guidelines Applied
Most cases had §2L1.2 (Unlawfully Entering or Remaining in the United States) as the primary guideline: 264 people. The Commission's offense type is a category that groups several guidelines.
The next most common guidelines were §2L2.2, with 14 people, §2L1.1, with 6 people, and §2L2.1, with 3 people. §2L1.1 is titled Smuggling, Transporting, or Harboring an Unlawful Alien.
Nearly All Pleaded Guilty
318 of 321 (more than 99%) pleaded guilty, and 3 were convicted after a trial. The national rate was also more than 99%, and the rate for all offenses in the district was 93%.
The median prison term was 3.9 months after a guilty plea and 21 months after a trial. The trial figure is based on 3 people, so it cannot be treated as typical.
Among the guilty pleas, 83% had a written plea agreement and 17% were straight pleas with no agreement.
Sentences Compared With the Guideline Range
The sentence was within the guideline range for 74% of the 321 people (236). It was below the range at the government's request for 14% (46) and below the range without a government request for 10% (32). 2% (7) were above the range.
Across all 94 districts, 62% of sentences in this offense type were within the range. For all offenses in the district, the share was 44%. Immigration sentences here were within the range more often than either figure.
A mandatory minimum applied to 3 of the 319 people with that information recorded (less than 1%).
Supervised Release and Other Terms
125 people (39%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, with a median term of 12 months. A fine was ordered for 1 person (less than 1%), and restitution for none.
49% of the people were in the lowest criminal history category, and less than 1% were in the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Yearly Counts Varied Widely
Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 had 143 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 had 178. The yearly count ranged from 13 people in 2024 to 71 in 2019, and 58 in 2025.
The yearly median prison term was 16 months in 2016 and 2.2 months in both 2020 and 2025. The records cannot show what changed from year to year.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 12 | 16 months | 100% |
| 2017 | 24 | 6.3 months | 100% |
| 2018 | 36 | 3.7 months | 100% |
| 2019 | 71 | 2.8 months | 99% |
| 2020 | 62 | 2.2 months | 98% |
| 2021 | 17 | 4.2 months | 100% |
| 2022 | 14 | 6 months | 100% |
| 2023 | 14 | 6 months | 93% |
| 2024 | 13 | 4.4 months | 100% |
| 2025 | 58 | 2.2 months | 100% |
Military Installations and Limits of the Data
Eglin AFB, Hurlburt Field, Pensacola, and Tyndall AFB, all in Florida, are installations in this district that appear in this site's court-martial data. Courts-martial are tried in military courts, not in this federal district court.
The data counts only people who were convicted and sentenced, and prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Northern District of Florida (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Florida North") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Immigration" (321). Offense types are the Commission's OFFGUIDE categories.
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)
- Federal Sentences in the Northern District of Florida, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Northern District of Florida, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Northern District of Florida, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Northern District of Florida, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Sexual Abuse Sentences in the Northern District of Florida, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- 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.