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# Federal Money Laundering Sentences in the Northern District of New York, FY2016–2025
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-money-laundering-sentences-northern-district-of-new-york/
- Published: 2026-11-04T10:59:53.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-04T10:59:53.000Z
- Description: Of the 102 people sentenced for money laundering in the Northern District of New York in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 50% received a sentence below the guideline range at the government's request (51 people). Across all 94 districts, 25% of sentences were within the range, and the district's own figur
- 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 Northern District of New York, FY20](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-northern-district-of-new-york/) › Money Laundering: Northern District of New York

**In brief:** Of the 102 people sentenced for money laundering in the Northern District of New York in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 50% received a sentence below the guideline range at the government's request (51 people). Across all 94 districts, 25% of sentences were within the range, and the district's own figure was also 25% (25 people). The median prison term was 52.5 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 102 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/).

## Sentences Below the Guideline Range at the Government's Request

The most distinctive figure in this district is the share of sentences below the guideline range at the government's request: 50%, or 51 of 102 people. Another 25% (26 people) were below the range without a government request, and 25% (25 people) were within the range. No sentence was above the range.

For all offenses in the district, 53% of sentences were within the range. For money laundering in all 94 districts, the figure was 25%.

The records do not show the reason for a government request in any single case.

## Prison Terms and Probation

Of the 102 people, 94 (92%) received a prison term, and 5 (5%) received probation only. The median prison term was 52.5 months, or 4.4 years. A quarter received 87 months or more, and a quarter received 16 months or less.

For money laundering in all districts, 88% were sent to prison and the median was 40 months. The district median was higher. The median for all offenses in the district was 24 months.

## Pleas and Trials

A total of 100 of 102 people (98%) pleaded guilty, and 2 were convicted after a trial. The median prison term after a guilty plea was 52.5 months. The trial median of 192 months is based on 2 people and is too small to compare.

Among those who pleaded guilty, 96% had a written plea agreement and 4% were straight pleas. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 40 people (39%).

## The Guidelines Behind the Cases

"Money Laundering" is an offense type assigned by the U.S. Sentencing Commission. Nearly all of these cases, 99 people, had §2S1.1 (Laundering of Monetary Instruments) as the primary guideline. The other 3 had §2S1.3 (Structuring Transactions to Evade Reporting Requirements).

These cases were 3% of the 3,763 people sentenced in the district.

## Supervised Release, Fines, and Criminal History

Supervised release was ordered for 92 people (90%), with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 10 (10%), and restitution for 16 (16%).

On criminal history, 58% were in the lowest category, category I, and 0% were in the highest, category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.

## Year by Year

Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 had 47 people sentenced, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 had 55\. Yearly counts run from 3 to 18, which are very small groups.

The yearly medians range from 0.3 months in fiscal year 2023 to 87 months in fiscal year 2025\. Those years had 5 and 15 people. The records do not support calling the change a trend.

| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
| ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- |
| 2016        | 3                | 16 months     | 3 of 3         |
| 2017        | 14               | 10 months     | 100%           |
| 2018        | 12               | 48.5 months   | 100%           |
| 2019        | 18               | 65 months     | 94%            |
| 2020        | 6                | 60 months     | 6 of 6         |
| 2021        | 8                | 45 months     | 8 of 8         |
| 2022        | 9                | 65 months     | 9 of 9         |
| 2023        | 5                | 0.3 months    | 5 of 5         |
| 2024        | 12               | 73.5 months   | 100%           |
| 2025        | 15               | 87 months     | 93%            |

## What Is Not in the Records

The data covers only people who were convicted and sentenced, and prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served. Fort Drum, New York, is in this district, but courts-martial are tried in military courts and not in this federal court.

The records do not show the amounts of money involved or the facts of any case.

### How We Counted

Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Northern District of New York (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "New York North") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Money Laundering" (102). 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 Northern District of New York, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-northern-district-of-new-york/) (overview)
- [Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Northern District of New York, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-immigration-sentences-northern-district-of-new-york/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Northern District of New York, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-northern-district-of-new-york/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Northern District of New York, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-northern-district-of-new-york/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Firearms Sentences in the Northern District of New York, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-northern-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.