> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.bodiesburied.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Federal Money Laundering Sentences in the Southern District of Indiana, FY2016–2025 - URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-money-laundering-sentences-southern-district-of-indiana/ - Published: 2026-11-04T11:05:44.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-04T11:05:44.000Z - Description: In the Southern District of Indiana, the median prison term for money laundering was 79 months (6.6 years) in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 147 people were sentenced, and 138 of them (94%) received a prison term. For all 94 federal districts, the median was 40 months. - 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 Southern District of Indiana, FY201](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-southern-district-of-indiana/) › Money Laundering: Southern District of Indiana **In brief:** In the Southern District of Indiana, the median prison term for money laundering was 79 months (6.6 years) in fiscal years 2016 to 2025\. 147 people were sentenced, and 138 of them (94%) received a prison term. For all 94 federal districts, the median was 40 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 147 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/). ## Prison Terms for Money Laundering 138 of the 147 people (94%) were sent to prison. 7 people (5%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement. The median prison term was 79 months. A quarter received 180 months or more, and a quarter received 36 months or less. 4 people received a life sentence. The median for all 94 districts was 40 months, with 88% sent to prison. For all offenses in the Southern District of Indiana, the median was 70 months. These are the terms imposed, not time served. ## Trials Led to Longer Median Terms 131 of 147 people (89%) pleaded guilty, and 16 were convicted after a trial. The guilty plea rate was 93% for all 94 districts and 97% for all offenses in this district. The median prison term was 70.5 months after a guilty plea and 227.5 months after a trial. The trial figure is based on 16 people. The records do not show what produced the difference between the groups. Among those who pleaded guilty, 89% had a written plea agreement and 11% were straight pleas with no agreement. | Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty | | ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- | | 2016 | 14 | 57 months | 86% | | 2017 | 11 | 121.5 months | 91% | | 2018 | 20 | 76.5 months | 90% | | 2019 | 22 | 127.5 months | 77% | | 2020 | 11 | 110 months | 82% | | 2021 | 19 | 33.5 months | 100% | | 2022 | 13 | 57 months | 92% | | 2023 | 12 | 65 months | 92% | | 2024 | 15 | 102 months | 87% | | 2025 | 10 | 108 months | 100% | ## Below-Range Sentences Were More Common Than Within-Range Sentences 24% of sentences (36 people) were within the advisory guideline range. 35% (52 people) were below the range at the government's request, and 39% (58 people) were below it without a government request. 1 person was above the range. For all 94 districts, 25% of money laundering sentences were within the range. For all offenses in this district, it was 43%. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 67 of the 147 people (46%). ## Guidelines Behind the Cases Money laundering is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's offense type. The primary guideline was §2S1.1 (Laundering of Monetary Instruments) for 143 people. For 4 people it was §2S1.3 (Structuring Transactions to Evade Reporting Requirements). The guideline records the main offense for sentencing. It does not show what crime produced the money in each case. ## Supervision, Fines, and Restitution 137 people (93%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 67 people (46%), and restitution for 42 (29%). In criminal history, 65% were in the lowest category, category I, and 4% were in the highest, category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field. ## Caseload and Yearly Counts Money laundering cases were 3% of the 4,205 people sentenced in this district in fiscal years 2016 to 2025\. 67 people were sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2019, and 80 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. Yearly counts range from 10 to 22 people. Yearly medians move between 33.5 and 127.5 months. With counts this small, the table does not show a trend. ## What the Records Cannot Show The data counts only people who were convicted and sentenced. Acquittals and dismissals are not in it. It does not show the amount of money involved in any case. ### How We Counted Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Southern District of Indiana (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Indiana South") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Money Laundering" (147). 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 Southern District of Indiana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-southern-district-of-indiana/) (overview) - [Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Southern District of Indiana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-southern-district-of-indiana/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Firearms Sentences in the Southern District of Indiana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-southern-district-of-indiana/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Southern District of Indiana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-southern-district-of-indiana/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Robbery Sentences in the Southern District of Indiana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-robbery-sentences-southern-district-of-indiana/) (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.