Federal Individual Rights Offense Sentences in the District of Kansas, FY2016–2025
Of the 13 people sentenced under the Commission's "Individual Rights" offense type in the District of Kansas in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 6 were convicted after a trial and 7 (54%) pleaded guilty. Guilty pleas were 97% for all offenses in the district and 80% for this offense type nationally. The m
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the District of Kansas, FY2016–2025 › Individual Rights Offense: District of Kansas
In brief: Of the 13 people sentenced under the Commission's "Individual Rights" offense type in the District of Kansas in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 6 were convicted after a trial and 7 (54%) pleaded guilty. Guilty pleas were 97% for all offenses in the district and 80% for this offense type nationally. The median prison term was 48 months (4 years).
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 13 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.
Trials Were Common in This Small Group
The U.S. Sentencing Commission recorded 13 people in this offense type in the District of Kansas. A total of 7 (54%) pleaded guilty, and 6 were convicted after a trial.
Across all 94 federal districts, 855 people were sentenced in this offense type, and 80% pleaded guilty. For all offenses in the District of Kansas, the figure was 97%. Trials were therefore more common here than in the district's other cases.
Among the 7 guilty pleas, 6 had a written plea agreement and 1 was a straight plea with no agreement.
Terms After Pleas and After Trials
The median prison term after a guilty plea was 18 months. After a trial it was 60 months, based on 5 people convicted at trial and sent to prison.
Both groups are small. The comparison describes these 13 cases only and does not show that trials lead to longer terms.
Prison and Probation
A prison term went to 9 of the 13 people (69%), and 4 (31%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement. For all districts, 68% were sent to prison.
Among those sent to prison in Kansas, the median prison term was 48 months. A quarter received 60 months or more, and a quarter received 27 months or less. The national median was 30 months, so the Kansas median was higher. The median for all offenses in the district was 46 months.
Guidelines Behind the Offense Type
Individual Rights is the Commission's category, assigned from the primary guideline. The most common in this district was §2H4.1 (Peonage, Involuntary Servitude, and Slave Trade), with 8 cases.
Next were §2H1.1 (Offenses Involving Individual Rights) with 4 cases and §2H3.3 (Obstructing Correspondence) with 1.
These cases were less than 1% of the 4,217 people sentenced in the district in fiscal years 2016 to 2025.
The Guideline Range and Mandatory Minimums
Below the range without a government request: 7 people (54%). Within the range: 4 (31%). Below the range at the government's request: 2 (15%). Above the range: none (0%).
For all districts, 38% of sentences in this offense type were within the range. For all offenses in the district, the figure was 42%. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 0 of the 13 people (0%).
Supervised Release, Restitution, and Criminal History
Supervised release after prison was ordered for 9 people (69%), with a median term of 12 months. Restitution was ordered for 7 (54%), and no fine was ordered (0%).
On criminal history, 69% were in the lowest category, category I, and 8% were in the highest, category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Yearly Counts and Limits
There were 4 people in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 9 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. The table lists the years in the sheet. Fiscal year 2025 has 8 of the 13 people, and only 2 of those 8 pleaded guilty.
This data covers only people who were convicted and sentenced. Anyone acquitted or whose case was dismissed is absent. The records do not show what any case involved. Fort Leavenworth, Fort Riley, and McConnell AFB are in the district, but courts-martial are held in military courts, not in this federal court.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
| 2017 | 1 | 0 months | 1 of 1 |
| 2018 | 2 | 19.5 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2022 | 1 | 27 months | 1 of 1 |
| 2025 | 8 | 60 months | 2 of 8 |
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of Kansas (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Kansas") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Individual Rights" (13). 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 District of Kansas, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of Kansas, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of Kansas, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of Kansas, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the District of Kansas, 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.