Federal Individual Rights Offense Sentences in the Southern District of Texas, FY2016–2025
11 people were sentenced in the Southern District of Texas for individual rights offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2024. 7 (64%) received a prison term, with a median of 67 months (5.6 years). 10 (91%) pleaded guilty, and 1 was convicted after a trial.
· Understanding Trends in Military Practice · 6 min read
Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the Southern District of Texas, FY2016– › Individual Rights Offense: Southern District of Texas
In brief: 11 people were sentenced in the Southern District of Texas for individual rights offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2024. 7 (64%) received a prison term, with a median of 67 months (5.6 years). 10 (91%) pleaded guilty, and 1 was convicted after a trial.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 11 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.
What Counts as an Individual Rights Offense?
"Individual Rights" is a category used by the U.S. Sentencing Commission. A case is placed in it by the primary sentencing guideline that applied.
In this district, 5 people were sentenced under §2H4.1 (Peonage, Involuntary Servitude, and Slave Trade). Another 3 were sentenced under §2H1.1 (Offenses Involving Individual Rights). One person each was sentenced under §2H2.1 (Obstructing an Election or Registration) and §2H3.3 (Obstructing Correspondence).
Prison and Probation
7 of the 11 people (64%) received a prison term. 4 (36%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement.
The median prison term was 67 months. A quarter received 155 months or more, and a quarter received 32 months or less. Across all 94 districts, the median for this offense type was 30 months, and 68% of 855 people were sent to prison.
The Trial Case
10 people (91%) pleaded guilty, and 1 was convicted after a trial. After a guilty plea, the median prison term was 62 months. After a trial, it was 360 months, based on 1 person.
One case cannot support any general statement about trials. The comparison shows only what happened in these 11 cases. Among guilty pleas, 70% had a written plea agreement and 30% did not.
Guideline Range and Mandatory Minimums
The range was recorded for 11 people. 6 (55%) were sentenced within it. 2 (18%) were below the range at the government's request, and 3 (27%) were below it without a government request. None were above the range.
For all districts, 38% of sentences for this offense type were within the range. For all offenses in this district, 58% were.
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 0 of the 11 people with that information recorded.
Supervised Release, Fines, and Restitution
6 people (55%) were ordered to serve supervised release, with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 1 (9%), and restitution for 4 (36%).
In criminal history, 91% were in the lowest category I and 0% in the highest (VI). Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Small Counts by Year
Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 had 4 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 had 7. The largest single year was fiscal year 2024 with 4 people and a median of 155 months. In fiscal year 2021, the 2 people had a median of 208.5 months.
These counts are small, and the table shows no trend. Individual rights cases were less than 1% of the 71,026 people sentenced in this district. The data counts only people who were convicted and sentenced, and it shows terms imposed, not time served.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 2 | 0 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2018 | 1 | 7 months | 1 of 1 |
| 2019 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
| 2021 | 2 | 208.5 months | 1 of 2 |
| 2022 | 1 | 67 months | 1 of 1 |
| 2024 | 4 | 155 months | 4 of 4 |
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Southern District of Texas (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Texas South") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Individual Rights" (11). 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 Southern District of Texas, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Southern District of Texas, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Southern District of Texas, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Southern District of Texas, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Southern District of Texas, 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.