Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Western District of Pennsylvania, FY2016–2025
The median prison term for immigration offenses in the Western District of Pennsylvania was 0 months in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Of the 128 people sentenced, 117 (91%) received a prison term, and all 128 pleaded guilty. The median across all 94 districts was 7 months.
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In brief: The median prison term for immigration offenses in the Western District of Pennsylvania was 0 months in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Of the 128 people sentenced, 117 (91%) received a prison term, and all 128 pleaded guilty. The median across all 94 districts was 7 months.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 128 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.
A Median Prison Term of 0 Months
The U.S. Sentencing Commission counted 128 people in this district whose offense type was "Immigration." The median prison term among those sent to prison was 0 months. A quarter received 7.8 months or more, and a quarter received 0 months or less.
The sheet reports a median of 0 months for the 117 people recorded as receiving a prison term. The records do not explain how a 0-month term was recorded. The sheet does not say whether those sentences reflect time already served.
Across all 94 federal districts, the median prison term for immigration offenses was 7 months, and 95% of people were sent to prison. For all offenses in this district, the median prison term was 48 months.
Guilty Pleas and Plea Agreements
All 128 people (100%) pleaded guilty, and 0 were convicted after a trial. Across all districts, guilty pleas were more than 99%.
Written plea agreements covered 34% of the guilty pleas, and 59% were straight pleas with no agreement.
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 0 of the 65 people with that information recorded.
Sentences Against the Guideline Range
Of the 126 people with guideline information, 99 (79%) were sentenced within the guideline range. Another 14 (11%) were sentenced below the range without a government request, and 12 (10%) were sentenced below it at the government's request. One person (less than 1%) was sentenced above the range.
Across all districts, 62% of immigration sentences were within the range. The share within the range here was higher. For all offenses in this district, it was 38%.
Which Guidelines Applied
§2L1.2 (Unlawfully Entering or Remaining in the United States) was the primary guideline for 23 people. §2L2.1 applied to 8 people, §2L1.1 to 3, and §2L2.2 to 3. These are the most common primary guidelines in this district.
Immigration cases were 3% of the 4,460 people sentenced in the district in the period.
Supervised Release, Fines, and Criminal History
Supervised release after prison was ordered for 52 people (41%), with a median term of 12 months. A fine was ordered for 7 people (5%). Restitution was ordered for 0.
In criminal history, 54% were in the lowest category and 0% were in the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Counts by Year and Limits of the Records
Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 account for 68 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 account for 60. Fiscal years run from October through September. The yearly counts in the table range from 2 to 24 people, and most yearly medians are 0 months.
The data counts only people who were convicted and sentenced. Acquittals and dismissals are not in it. The prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 19 | 0 months | 100% |
| 2017 | 11 | 2.8 months | 100% |
| 2018 | 24 | 4.5 months | 100% |
| 2019 | 14 | 0 months | 100% |
| 2020 | 10 | 4 months | 100% |
| 2021 | 2 | 0 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2022 | 8 | 1 months | 8 of 8 |
| 2023 | 5 | 0 months | 5 of 5 |
| 2024 | 11 | 0 months | 100% |
| 2025 | 24 | 0 months | 100% |
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Western District of Pennsylvania (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Penn. West") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Immigration" (128). 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.
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 Western District of Pennsylvania, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Western District of Pennsylvania, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Western District of Pennsylvania, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Western District of Pennsylvania, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Child Pornography Sentences in the Western District of Pennsylvania, 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.