Federal Money Laundering Sentences in the District of Oregon, FY2016–2025
In the District of Oregon, 152 people were sentenced for money laundering in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 78% received a prison term, with a median of 33 months, which is lower than the 40 months for money laundering in all 94 federal districts together. Sentences below the guideline range at the gove
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the District of Oregon, FY2016–2025 › Money Laundering: District of Oregon
In brief: In the District of Oregon, 152 people were sentenced for money laundering in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 78% received a prison term, with a median of 33 months, which is lower than the 40 months for money laundering in all 94 federal districts together. Sentences below the guideline range at the government's request were 71%.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 152 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.
Below the Range at the Government's Request
In 71% of cases (108 people), the sentence was below the guideline range at the government's request. That is the largest group. Another 18% (27) were below the range without a government request, 9% (14) were within it, and 2% (3) were above it.
For all 94 districts, 25% of money laundering sentences were within the range. For all offenses in the District of Oregon, the figure was 22%. The records do not give the reasons for any request.
Prison, Probation, and Median Terms
118 of the 152 people (78%) received a prison term, and 24 (16%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement. In all districts, 88% were sent to prison.
Among those sent to prison, a quarter received 60.8 months or more, and a quarter received 13.5 months or less. The median for all offenses in the district was 32 months, which is about the same as the 33 months here. Prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 24 | 37 months | 96% |
| 2017 | 10 | 42 months | 100% |
| 2018 | 16 | 36.5 months | 100% |
| 2019 | 19 | 24 months | 95% |
| 2020 | 23 | 24 months | 100% |
| 2021 | 13 | 46 months | 100% |
| 2022 | 17 | 22.5 months | 100% |
| 2023 | 10 | 45.5 months | 90% |
| 2024 | 8 | 57 months | 8 of 8 |
| 2025 | 12 | 57 months | 100% |
Guidelines Used
Money laundering is the Commission's own offense category, and these cases were 4% of the 4,319 people sentenced in the district. The most common primary guideline was §2S1.1 (Laundering of Monetary Instruments), with 146 people. §2S1.3 (Structuring Transactions to Evade Reporting Requirements) had 6.
Guilty Pleas and Trials
149 of 152 people (98%) pleaded guilty, and 3 were convicted after a trial. The median prison term after a guilty plea was 33 months. After a trial it was 87 months, based on 3 people.
All of the guilty pleas (100%) had a written plea agreement. For all districts, guilty pleas were 93% in this category.
Mandatory Minimums, Restitution, and Supervision
A mandatory minimum applied to 39 of the 152 people (26%). Restitution was ordered for 49 (32%), and a fine for 1 (less than 1%). 118 people (78%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, with a median term of 36 months.
By criminal history, 72% were in the lowest category and 3% in the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Fiscal Year Counts and Limits
69 people were sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2019, and 83 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. The fiscal year runs October 1 to the end of September. Yearly counts are 8 to 24 people, so medians such as 57 months in fiscal years 2024 and 2025 describe small groups.
The data counts only people who were convicted and sentenced. Acquittals and dismissals are not included, and no dollar amounts are in these figures.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of Oregon (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Oregon") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Money Laundering" (152). 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 District of Oregon, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of Oregon, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of Oregon, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the District of Oregon, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of Oregon, 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.