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# Federal Money Laundering Sentences in the District of Massachusetts, FY2016–2025
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-money-laundering-sentences-district-of-massachusetts/
- Published: 2026-11-04T10:59:26.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-04T10:59:26.000Z
- Description: 287 people were sentenced for money laundering in the District of Massachusetts in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Only 13% of sentences were within the guideline range, compared with 25% for money laundering in all 94 federal districts. The median prison term was 42 months, compared with 40 months natio
- 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 District of Massachusetts, FY2016–2](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-district-of-massachusetts/) › Money Laundering: District of Massachusetts

**In brief:** 287 people were sentenced for money laundering in the District of Massachusetts in fiscal years 2016 to 2025\. Only 13% of sentences were within the guideline range, compared with 25% for money laundering in all 94 federal districts. The median prison term was 42 months, compared with 40 months nationwide.

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 287 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/).

## Few Sentences Were Within the Guideline Range

36 of the 287 people (13%) were sentenced within the guideline range. 125 (44%) were sentenced below it at the government's request, and 123 (43%) were below it without a government request. 3 people (1%) were above the range.

For money laundering in all districts, 25% of sentences were within the range. For all offenses in the District of Massachusetts, the figure was 29%. Money laundering cases here were within the range less often than either.

## Prison Terms

265 people (92%) received a prison term, and 16 (6%) received probation only. The median prison term was 42 months, or 3.5 years. A quarter received 72 months or more, and a quarter received 12 months or less.

In all districts, 88% of people in this offense type were sent to prison, and the median was 40 months. The median for all offenses in this district was 30 months, which is lower than the median for these cases.

## Which Guidelines Applied

"Money Laundering" is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's offense type. 265 cases used §2S1.1 (Laundering of Monetary Instruments), and 20 used §2S1.3 (Structuring Transactions to Evade Reporting Requirements).

These cases were 6% of the 4,847 people sentenced in the district over the 10 fiscal years. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 74 of the 285 people with that information recorded (26%).

## Pleas, Trials, and Their Median Terms

263 of 287 people (92%) pleaded guilty, and 24 were convicted after a trial. Among the guilty pleas, 70% had a written plea agreement and 30% were straight pleas.

The median prison term was 38 months after a guilty plea and 81 months after a trial, based on 22 people. For all offenses in this district, 95% pleaded guilty, and for money laundering in all districts the figure was 93%.

## Medians and Counts by Fiscal Year

A fiscal year starts on October 1 and ends at the close of September. The median was 60 months in fiscal year 2017 and 20 months in fiscal year 2020\. Fiscal year 2024 had the most people, with 48.

117 people were sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 170 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025\. Yearly groups are between 16 and 48 people, so the medians move with small numbers of cases and show no clear direction.

| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
| ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- |
| 2016        | 28               | 36 months     | 96%            |
| 2017        | 29               | 60 months     | 100%           |
| 2018        | 34               | 48 months     | 85%            |
| 2019        | 26               | 36 months     | 92%            |
| 2020        | 21               | 20 months     | 100%           |
| 2021        | 16               | 33 months     | 100%           |
| 2022        | 16               | 44 months     | 94%            |
| 2023        | 28               | 52 months     | 82%            |
| 2024        | 48               | 38 months     | 90%            |
| 2025        | 41               | 42 months     | 88%            |

## Supervised Release, Money Penalties, and Criminal History

243 people (85%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 27 people (9%) and restitution for 85 (30%).

74% were in the lowest criminal history category, and 5% were in the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.

## What These Records Cannot Show

The data counts only people who were convicted and sentenced. Acquittals and dismissals are missing, and prison terms are those imposed, not time served.

It does not show the crime behind the money or the amounts laundered, so the figures say nothing about the scale of any case.

### How We Counted

Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of Massachusetts (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Massachusetts") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Money Laundering" (287). 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 District of Massachusetts, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-district-of-massachusetts/) (overview)
- [Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of Massachusetts, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-district-of-massachusetts/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of Massachusetts, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-district-of-massachusetts/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the District of Massachusetts, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-immigration-sentences-district-of-massachusetts/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of Massachusetts, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-district-of-massachusetts/) (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.