Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Southern District of New York, FY2016–2025
456 people were sentenced for immigration offenses in the Southern District of New York in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, which is 4% of the district's 12,035 people. The median prison term was 7 months, the same as the median across all 94 federal districts. The yearly count fell from 74 people in fisc
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the Southern District of New York, FY20 › Immigration Offense: Southern District of New York
In brief: 456 people were sentenced for immigration offenses in the Southern District of New York in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, which is 4% of the district's 12,035 people. The median prison term was 7 months, the same as the median across all 94 federal districts. The yearly count fell from 74 people in fiscal year 2016 to 22 in fiscal year 2025.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 456 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.
Fewer People Sentenced in Later Years
The table lists 74 people sentenced in fiscal year 2016 and 22 in fiscal year 2025. Fiscal years 2021 through 2025 each had between 21 and 34 people. The records show the counts but not the reasons for them.
Median prison terms in the table range from 3.4 months in fiscal year 2019 to 16.5 months in fiscal year 2022. Fiscal years run from October 1 through the end of September.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 74 | 12 months | 100% |
| 2017 | 67 | 7.3 months | 99% |
| 2018 | 70 | 6.6 months | 99% |
| 2019 | 64 | 3.4 months | 95% |
| 2020 | 51 | 4 months | 100% |
| 2021 | 29 | 5 months | 100% |
| 2022 | 34 | 16.5 months | 97% |
| 2023 | 21 | 10 months | 100% |
| 2024 | 24 | 11 months | 100% |
| 2025 | 22 | 10 months | 100% |
Prison Terms
436 of the 456 people (96%) received a prison term, and 15 (3%) received probation only. The median prison term was 7 months. A quarter received 18 months or more, and a quarter received 0 months or less.
Across all 94 districts, 95% were sent to prison and the median was 7 months. For all offenses in this district, the median was 33 months.
Nearly Everyone Pleaded Guilty
450 people (99%) pleaded guilty, and 6 were convicted after a trial. Across all 94 districts, more than 99% pleaded guilty. For all offenses in this district the rate was 95%.
The median prison term after a guilty plea was 7 months. After a trial it was 21 months, based on 6 people. That is a small group.
Among the guilty pleas, 41% had a written plea agreement and 58% were straight pleas with no agreement. Straight pleas were more common here than plea agreements.
Mandatory Minimums and the Guideline Range
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 7 of the 388 people with that information recorded (2%).
Of 454 people with the information, 40% (181) were sentenced within the guideline range. 18% (81) were below it at the government's request, and 41% (188) were below it without a government request. Less than 1% (4) were above it. Across all 94 districts, 62% of sentences were within the range, and for all offenses in this district, 22%.
The Guidelines Used
"Immigration" is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's offense type for this group. The most common primary guideline was §2L1.2 (Unlawfully Entering or Remaining in the United States), with 295 people. Next was §2L2.2 (Fraudulently Acquiring Documents Relating to Naturalization, Citizenship, or Legal Resident Status for Own Use) with 41 people, then §2L2.1 (Trafficking in a Document Relating to Naturalization, Citizenship, or Legal Resident Status, or a United States Passport) with 30 people. §2L1.1 (Smuggling, Transporting, or Harboring an Unlawful Alien) applied to 15 people.
Supervised Release and Criminal History
245 people (54%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 13 people (3%), and restitution for 4 people (less than 1%).
32% of the people were in the lowest criminal history category (Category I), and 1% were in the highest (VI). Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
What the Records Cannot Show
Only people who were convicted and sentenced are counted. Acquittals and dismissals are not in the data, and prison terms are those imposed, not time served.
The records do not describe any person's background or the facts of any case.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Southern District of New York (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "New York South") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Immigration" (456). 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 Southern District of New York, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Southern District of New York, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Southern District of New York, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Southern District of New York, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Robbery Sentences in the Southern District of New York, 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.