Federal Individual Rights Offense Sentences in the Southern District of Mississippi, FY2016–2025
In the Southern District of Mississippi, 21 people were sentenced under the Commission's "Individual Rights" offense type in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, and all 21 pleaded guilty. Among the 18 sent to prison, the median prison term was 65 months (5.4 years). The 10 people sentenced in fiscal year 202
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In brief: In the Southern District of Mississippi, 21 people were sentenced under the Commission's "Individual Rights" offense type in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, and all 21 pleaded guilty. Among the 18 sent to prison, the median prison term was 65 months (5.4 years). The 10 people sentenced in fiscal year 2024 had a median of 165.5 months.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 21 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.
One Year With Most of the Cases
The yearly table shows that 10 of the 21 people were sentenced in fiscal year 2024. Their median prison term was 165.5 months. No other year has more than 3 people.
Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 account for 3 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 account for 18 people. A fiscal year starts on October 1 and ends the following September. The median of 65 months covers all years together, so fiscal year 2024 is a large part of the group it describes. The records cannot show why so many cases were sentenced in the same year.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
| 2019 | 2 | 96 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2020 | 1 | 70 months | 1 of 1 |
| 2022 | 3 | 57 months | 3 of 3 |
| 2023 | 1 | 42 months | 1 of 1 |
| 2024 | 10 | 165.5 months | 100% |
| 2025 | 3 | 14 months | 3 of 3 |
Prison Terms Across the Whole Period
Of the 21 people, 18 (86%) received a prison term, and 3 (14%) received probation only. Among those sent to prison, a quarter received 36.2 months or less, and a quarter received 190.5 months or more.
Across all 94 districts, 68% of people in this offense type were sent to prison, and the median prison term was 30 months. For all offenses in the Southern District of Mississippi, the median was 48 months. Prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served.
Every Person Pleaded Guilty
All 21 people (100%) pleaded guilty, and none was convicted after a trial. The guilty plea rate was 80% for this type across all 94 districts and 97% for all offenses in the district.
Every guilty plea came with a written plea agreement (100%). No one entered a straight plea.
One Guideline Covers the Group
The offense type is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's category. In this district, all 21 people had the same primary guideline, §2H1.1 (Offenses Involving Individual Rights).
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 3 of the 21 people (14%). In the lowest criminal history category, category I, were 90% of the people, and 0% were in the highest, category VI.
How Sentences Compared With the Guideline Range
The sentence was within the guideline range for 7 people (33%). It was below the range without a government request for 8 people (38%), and below it at the government's request for 5 people (24%). It was above the range for 1 person (5%).
The within-range share was lower than the 38% for this type across all 94 districts, and lower than the 69% for all offenses in the district.
Supervised Release, Fines, and Restitution
Supervised release after prison was ordered for 18 people (86%), with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 13 people (62%). Restitution was ordered for 8 people (38%).
What Cannot Be Learned From These Records
The Commission counts only people who were convicted and sentenced. Acquittals and dismissals are not included, and the data does not show the facts of any case. With 21 people in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, and with so many in one year, the numbers are not a basis for describing trends.
Individual Rights cases were less than 1% of the 3,361 people sentenced in the district. Keesler AFB, Mississippi, is in this district. Courts-martial are tried in military courts, not in this federal court, and these numbers do not describe them.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Southern District of Mississippi (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Mississippi South") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Individual Rights" (21). 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 Mississippi, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Southern District of Mississippi, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Southern District of Mississippi, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Southern District of Mississippi, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Southern District of Mississippi, 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.