Federal Murder Sentences in the Eastern District of Virginia, FY2016–2025
66 of the 118 people sentenced for the Commission's offense type "Murder" in the Eastern District of Virginia in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 received a life sentence. All 118 received a prison term, and the median was 470 months (39.2 years). For this offense type in all 94 federal districts, the medi
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the Eastern District of Virginia, FY201 › Murder: Eastern District of Virginia
In brief: 66 of the 118 people sentenced for the Commission's offense type "Murder" in the Eastern District of Virginia in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 received a life sentence. All 118 received a prison term, and the median was 470 months (39.2 years). For this offense type in all 94 federal districts, the median was 240 months.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 118 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.
Life Sentences and a Median of 470 Months
All 118 people (100%) received a prison term. 66 received a life sentence.
The median prison term was 470 months. A quarter received 470 months or more, which is the same figure as the median, and a quarter received 300 months or less. These are terms imposed, not time served.
In all districts, 3,754 people were sentenced for this offense type, and the median prison term was 240 months. The median in this district is higher. For all offenses in this district, the median was 46 months.
Trials Were Common
69 of 118 people (58%) pleaded guilty, and 49 were convicted after a trial. In all districts, 78% pleaded guilty, and for all offenses in this district the rate was 96%.
The median prison term was 365 months after a guilty plea and 470 months after a trial. The trial figure is based on 49 people. Of the guilty pleas, 91% had a written plea agreement, and 6% were straight pleas with no agreement.
Which Guidelines Applied
Murder is a Commission offense type. §2A1.1 (First Degree Murder) was the primary guideline for 105 people. §2A1.5 (Conspiracy or Solicitation to Commit Murder) applied to 6, §2A1.2 (Second Degree Murder) to 4, and §2X3.1 (Accessory After the Fact) to 3.
These cases were 1% of the 10,381 people sentenced in the district. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 69 of the 118 people (58%).
Guideline Range Results
69% of sentences (82) were within the guideline range. 13% (15) were below it at the government's request, and 15% (18) were below it without a government request. 3% (3) were above it.
Across all districts, 39% of sentences for this offense type were within the range. For all offenses in this district, the share was 60%.
Counts by Fiscal Year
45 people were sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2019, and 73 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. A fiscal year starts October 1 and ends the next September.
Yearly counts in the table run from 6 to 18 people. The median is 470 months in several years, and fiscal year 2021 shows 252 months for 13 people. The records cannot show what accounts for the differences.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 10 | 441 months | 60% |
| 2017 | 14 | 445 months | 43% |
| 2018 | 15 | 470 months | 67% |
| 2019 | 6 | 470 months | 4 of 6 |
| 2020 | 8 | 470 months | 6 of 8 |
| 2021 | 13 | 252 months | 69% |
| 2022 | 14 | 470 months | 57% |
| 2023 | 10 | 470 months | 60% |
| 2024 | 18 | 470 months | 44% |
| 2025 | 10 | 463 months | 60% |
Supervised Release, Criminal History, and Limits
All 118 people (100%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, with a median term of 60 months. 2 people (2%) received it for life. Restitution was ordered for 58 people (49%), and a fine for 1 (less than 1%).
Criminal history category I, the lowest, applied to 41% of the people, and category VI, the highest, applied to 14%. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Fort Lee, Joint Base Langley-Eustis, Marine Corps Base Quantico, and Norfolk are in this district, but their courts-martial are tried in military courts. The data covers only people convicted and sentenced and does not describe any case.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Eastern District of Virginia (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Virginia East") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Murder" (118). 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 Eastern District of Virginia, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Eastern District of Virginia, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Other Offense Sentences in the Eastern District of Virginia, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Eastern District of Virginia, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Eastern District of Virginia, 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.