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# Federal Kidnapping Sentences in the Eastern District of New York, FY2016–2025
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-kidnapping-sentences-eastern-district-of-new-york/
- Published: 2026-11-04T11:00:05.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-04T11:00:05.000Z
- Description: In the Eastern District of New York, 30 people were sentenced for kidnapping offenses in fiscal years 2017 to 2025. Of them, 28 (93%) were sent to prison, with a median prison term of 90 months (7.5 years). The median across all 94 districts was 155 months. For all offenses in the district, it was 2
- Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart
- Tags: Understanding Trends, Federal

[Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [Federal Prosecution Analysis](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) › [Federal Sentences in the Eastern District of New York, FY201](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-eastern-district-of-new-york/) › Kidnapping: Eastern District of New York

**In brief:** In the Eastern District of New York, 30 people were sentenced for kidnapping offenses in fiscal years 2017 to 2025\. Of them, 28 (93%) were sent to prison, with a median prison term of 90 months (7.5 years). The median across all 94 districts was 155 months. For all offenses in the district, it was 27 months.

Updated November 4, 2026 · Sources: U.S. Sentencing Commission and Federal Judicial Center, fiscal years 2016–2025

This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 30 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](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) series, which builds on [Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/military-sentencing-guidelines-federal-system/). How the numbers were built: [How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-data-methodology/).

## The Median Prison Term for Kidnapping

The median prison term among the 28 people sent to prison was 90 months (7.5 years). A quarter received 132 months or more, and a quarter received 66 months or less.

Across all districts, the median for this offense type was 155 months, which is higher. Across all offenses in the Eastern District of New York, the median was 27 months, which is lower.

Probation only was given to 2 people (7%). In all districts, more than 99% of people sentenced for kidnapping were sent to prison.

## Trials and Guilty Pleas

Of the 30 people, 23 (77%) pleaded guilty, and 7 were convicted after a trial. Across all districts, 84% pleaded guilty. For all offenses in this district, the figure was 95%.

The median prison term after a guilty plea was 84 months. After a trial it was 180 months, based on 7 people convicted at trial and sent to prison. The trial group is small, and the records do not show how the cases differed.

Among the guilty pleas, 96% had a written plea agreement, and 4% were straight pleas.

## Mandatory Minimums and the Guideline Range

A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 13 of the 30 people (43%).

Only 1 sentence (3%) was within the guideline range. Sentences below the range were far more common: 18 (60%) without a request from the government, and 11 (37%) at the government's request. No sentence was above the range.

In all districts, 33% of sentences for kidnapping were within the range. For all offenses in this district, the share was 24%.

## Which Guidelines Applied

"Kidnapping" is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's offense type. The most common primary guideline was §2A4.1 (Kidnapping, Abduction, Unlawful Restraint), used for 28 people.

A total of 2 people were sentenced under §2X3.1 (Accessory After the Fact). These cases were less than 1% of the 6,411 people sentenced in the district in fiscal years 2016 to 2025.

## Yearly Counts

Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 have 10 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 have 20 people. The table lists only years with cases. The largest is fiscal year 2019, with 9 people.

Yearly medians range from 60 months in fiscal year 2022 to 168 months in fiscal year 2025\. With 1 to 9 people in a year, these medians do not show a trend. The fiscal year runs from October 1 to September 30.

| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
| ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- |
| 2017        | 1                | 125 months    | 1 of 1         |
| 2019        | 9                | 108 months    | 7 of 9         |
| 2021        | 3                | 72 months     | 2 of 3         |
| 2022        | 6                | 60 months     | 6 of 6         |
| 2023        | 3                | 150 months    | 2 of 3         |
| 2025        | 8                | 168 months    | 5 of 8         |

## After Prison, Fines, and Criminal History

Supervised release was ordered for 28 people (93%), with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 2 (7%), and restitution for 11 (37%).

In criminal history, 50% were in the lowest category (Category I), and 20% were in the highest (Category VI).

## What the Data Does Not Cover

The Commission counts only people who were convicted and sentenced. Acquittals and dismissals are not included, and prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served.

The records give no case details, so they cannot show why one sentence was longer than another.

### How We Counted

Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Eastern District of New York (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "New York East") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Kidnapping" (30). 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](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/military-sentencing-guidelines-federal-system/) (the background article)
- [Federal Prosecution Analysis](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) (all federal posts)
- [How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-data-methodology/) (sources and method)
- [Federal Sentences in the Eastern District of New York, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-eastern-district-of-new-york/) (overview)
- [Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Eastern District of New York, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-eastern-district-of-new-york/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Eastern District of New York, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-eastern-district-of-new-york/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Firearms Sentences in the Eastern District of New York, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-eastern-district-of-new-york/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Eastern District of New York, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-immigration-sentences-eastern-district-of-new-york/) (same district, other offense type)
- [U.S. Sentencing Commission, Individual Offender Datafiles](https://www.ussc.gov/research/datafiles/commission-datafiles?ref=bodiesburied.com) (source)
- [Federal Judicial Center, Integrated Database (criminal defendants)](https://www.fjc.gov/research/idb?ref=bodiesburied.com) (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](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/?ref=bodiesburied.com). This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.