Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Western District of Washington, FY2016–2025
Of 296 people sentenced for immigration offenses in the Western District of Washington in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 293 (99%) received a prison term. The median was 5.5 months. Only 46 (16%) were within the guideline range.
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In brief: Of 296 people sentenced for immigration offenses in the Western District of Washington in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 293 (99%) received a prison term. The median was 5.5 months. Only 46 (16%) were within the guideline range.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 296 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.
Why So Few Sentences Fell Within the Guideline Range
The guideline range is the sentence the Sentencing Guidelines recommend for each case. In this offense type, 46 of 296 people (16%) were sentenced inside it. The largest group, 219 (74%), was below the range at the government's request.
Another 25 (8%) were below the range with no government request, and 6 (2%) were above it. Nationally, 62% of sentences for this offense type were within the range. For all offense types in this district, the figure is 35%.
Prison Terms Were Short
Almost all of the 296 people, 293 (99%), were sentenced to prison. 3 (1%) received probation only.
The median prison term was 5.5 months. A quarter received 12 months or more, and a quarter received 1.7 months or less. These are the terms imposed, not time served. Across every offense type in the district, the median was 30 months.
National Totals for the Same Offense Type
Nationally, 217,838 people fall in this offense type. 95% went to prison, and the median prison term was 7 months, which is higher than the 5.5 months here. Immigration cases were 7% of the 3,992 people sentenced in this district.
Plea Agreements and the 2 Trials
294 people (more than 99%) pleaded guilty, and 2 were convicted after a trial. Every guilty plea was made under a written plea agreement.
The median was 5.5 months after a plea and 30 months after a trial. With only 2 people at trial, that second number cannot be treated as a pattern.
Main Guidelines
The primary guideline for 212 people was §2L1.2 (Unlawfully Entering or Remaining in the United States). 24 people were under §2L1.1 (Smuggling, Transporting, or Harboring an Unlawful Alien).
Document offenses made up the rest of the listed groups: 5 people under §2L2.1 (Trafficking in a Document Relating to Naturalization, Citizenship, or Legal Resident Status, or a United States Passport), and 2 under §2L2.2 (Fraudulently Acquiring Documents Relating to Naturalization, Citizenship, or Legal Resident Status for Own Use).
Release, Fines, and Prior Record
A mandatory minimum applied to 0 of the 296 people. Only 19 (6%) were ordered to serve supervised release, and the median term was 36 months. No fines were ordered, and 4 people (1%) were ordered to pay restitution.
19% had the lowest criminal history category, and 1% had the highest. Military records have no field for criminal history.
How the Yearly Counts Changed
Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 had 231 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 had 65. The table shows 83 people in 2018 and 3 in 2022, and it has no row for 2023. The records give no reason for the changes.
Bremerton, Washington and Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington are in this district, and courts-martial are heard in military courts. The federal data leaves out acquittals and dismissals.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 46 | 10 months | 98% |
| 2017 | 63 | 7.7 months | 100% |
| 2018 | 83 | 4 months | 100% |
| 2019 | 39 | 5 months | 100% |
| 2020 | 29 | 0.5 months | 100% |
| 2021 | 9 | 2.9 months | 9 of 9 |
| 2022 | 3 | 3.2 months | 2 of 3 |
| 2024 | 9 | 6 months | 9 of 9 |
| 2025 | 15 | 3.2 months | 100% |
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Western District of Washington (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Washington West") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Immigration" (296). 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 Washington, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Western District of Washington, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Other Offense Sentences in the Western District of Washington, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Western District of Washington, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Western District of Washington, 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.