> ## 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. # Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Southern District of Indiana, FY2016–2025 - URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-immigration-sentences-southern-district-of-indiana/ - Published: 2026-11-04T11:05:43.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-04T11:05:43.000Z - Description: In fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 148 people were sentenced for immigration offenses in the Southern District of Indiana, and all 148 pleaded guilty and received a prison term. The median prison term was 12 months. For all 94 federal districts, the median in this offense type was 7 months. - Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart - Tags: Understanding Trends, Federal [Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [Federal Prosecution Analysis](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) › [Federal Sentences in the Southern District of Indiana, FY201](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-southern-district-of-indiana/) › Immigration Offense: Southern District of Indiana **In brief:** In fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 148 people were sentenced for immigration offenses in the Southern District of Indiana, and all 148 pleaded guilty and received a prison term. The median prison term was 12 months. For all 94 federal districts, the median in this offense type was 7 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 148 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](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/). ## Every Case Was a Guilty Plea With a Prison Term All 148 people (100%) pleaded guilty, and none were convicted after a trial. All 148 (100%) also received a prison term, and none received probation only. Among them, the median prison term was 12 months. A quarter received 21.5 months or more, and a quarter received 6.1 months or less. The records do not show time served, only the terms imposed. Among those who pleaded guilty, 86% had a written plea agreement and 14% were straight pleas with no agreement. ## Comparison With All Federal Districts For all 94 districts, the immigration median was 7 months, 95% of people were sent to prison, and the guilty plea rate was more than 99%. The median in the Southern District of Indiana was higher. The share sent to prison was 100% here. For all offenses in this district, the median prison term was 70 months. The immigration median is lower than the all-offense median. ## Sentences Mostly Within the Guideline Range 76% of sentences (113 people) were within the advisory guideline range. 3% (5 people) were below the range at the government's request, and 19% (28 people) were below it without a government request. 1% (2 people) were above the range. The within-range share was 62% for all 94 districts and 43% for all offenses in this district. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 3 of the 148 people (2%). | Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty | | ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- | | 2016 | 14 | 19 months | 100% | | 2017 | 19 | 12 months | 100% | | 2018 | 18 | 12.5 months | 100% | | 2019 | 40 | 10.2 months | 100% | | 2020 | 14 | 6.6 months | 100% | | 2021 | 9 | 10 months | 9 of 9 | | 2022 | 1 | 15 months | 1 of 1 | | 2023 | 3 | 46 months | 3 of 3 | | 2024 | 11 | 15 months | 100% | | 2025 | 19 | 13 months | 100% | ## Guidelines Used Immigration is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's offense type. The most common primary guideline was §2L1.2 (Unlawfully Entering or Remaining in the United States), with 133 people. Next was §2L2.2 (Fraudulently Acquiring Documents Relating to Naturalization, Citizenship, or Legal Resident Status for Own Use), with 6 people, and §2L1.1 (Smuggling, Transporting, or Harboring an Unlawful Alien), with 5 people. ## Supervision, Fines, and Criminal History 126 people (85%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, and the median term was 24 months. A fine was ordered for 9 people (6%). Restitution was ordered for 0. In criminal history, 34% were in the lowest category, category I, and less than 1% were in the highest, category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field. ## Counts Over Time Immigration cases were 4% of the 4,205 people sentenced in this district in fiscal years 2016 to 2025\. 91 people were sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2019, and 57 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. Yearly counts range from 1 to 40 people. The year with 1 person (fiscal year 2022) and the year with 3 people (fiscal year 2023, median 46 months) are too small for a median to mean much. ## What the Records Cannot Show The data counts only people who were convicted and sentenced. Acquittals, dismissals, and cases handled outside the criminal courts are not in it. The records do not show the facts of any case. ### How We Counted Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Southern District of Indiana (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Indiana South") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Immigration" (148). 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](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) - [Federal Sentences in the Southern District of Indiana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-southern-district-of-indiana/) (overview) - [Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Southern District of Indiana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-southern-district-of-indiana/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Firearms Sentences in the Southern District of Indiana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-southern-district-of-indiana/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Southern District of Indiana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-southern-district-of-indiana/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Robbery Sentences in the Southern District of Indiana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-robbery-sentences-southern-district-of-indiana/) (same district, other offense type) - [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.