> ## 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 Murder Sentences in the Western District of New York, FY2016–2025 - URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-murder-sentences-western-district-of-new-york/ - Published: 2026-11-04T11:00:19.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-04T11:00:19.000Z - Description: All 82 people sentenced under the Commission's "Murder" offense type in the Western District of New York in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 received a prison term, and 15 of them received a life sentence. The median prison term was 240 months (20 years), the same as the median across all 94 federal distri - 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 Western District of New York, FY201](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-western-district-of-new-york/) › Murder: Western District of New York **In brief:** All 82 people sentenced under the Commission's "Murder" offense type in the Western District of New York in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 received a prison term, and 15 of them received a life sentence. The median prison term was 240 months (20 years), the same as the median across all 94 federal districts. Guilty pleas were 74%, compared with 78% nationally. 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 82 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 and Life Sentences The U.S. Sentencing Commission recorded 82 people in this offense type in the district. All 82 (100%) received a prison term, and none received probation only. A life sentence was given to 15 people. The median prison term was 240 months. A quarter received 330 months or more, and a quarter received 124.5 months or less. For all districts, 3,754 people were sentenced in this offense type, more than 99% were sent to prison, and the median was also 240 months. The median for all offenses in the Western District of New York was 41 months. ## Trials Were More Common Than in the District's Other Cases A total of 61 people (74%) pleaded guilty, and 21 were convicted after a trial. For all offenses in this district, 97% pleaded guilty. For the Murder offense type nationally, the figure was 78%. The median prison term was 210 months after a guilty plea and 470 months after a trial, based on 21 people sentenced after a trial. The records do not show how those cases differed. All guilty pleas (100%) had a written plea agreement. ## Which Guidelines Were Used? The offense type is the Commission's category, assigned from the primary guideline. In this district, §2A1.1 (First Degree Murder) was the primary guideline in 64 cases. Next were §2X3.1 (Accessory After the Fact) with 12 cases, §2A1.5 (Conspiracy or Solicitation to Commit Murder) with 4, and §2A1.2 (Second Degree Murder) with 2. Murder cases were 2% of the 4,205 people sentenced in the district in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. ## Mandatory Minimums and the Guideline Range A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 34 of the 82 people (41%). Below the range at the government's request: 44 people (54%). Within the range: 30 (37%). Below the range without a government request: 8 (10%). Above the range: none (0%). Nationally, 39% of sentences in this offense type were within the range, and 42% were within the range for all offenses in the district. ## Supervised Release, Fines, and Criminal History Supervised release after prison was ordered for all 82 people (100%), with a median term of 60 months. A fine was ordered for 10 (12%), and restitution for 30 (37%). On criminal history, 27% were in the lowest category, category I, and 7% were in the highest, category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field. ## A Smaller Group in Recent Years There were 64 people in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 18 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025\. The count was lower in the later period, which covers more years. The table gives each year, from 21 people in 2016 down to 1 in 2024\. Medians range from 53 months in 2025 to 470 months in 2018 and 2022\. Small yearly groups do not show a trend, and the records do not show why the count fell. | Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty | | ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- | | 2016 | 21 | 216 months | 90% | | 2017 | 23 | 240 months | 78% | | 2018 | 8 | 470 months | 3 of 8 | | 2019 | 12 | 132 months | 67% | | 2020 | 4 | 300 months | 3 of 4 | | 2021 | 4 | 61 months | 4 of 4 | | 2022 | 3 | 470 months | 0 of 3 | | 2023 | 2 | 352.5 months | 1 of 2 | | 2024 | 1 | 240 months | 1 of 1 | | 2025 | 4 | 53 months | 4 of 4 | ## Limits of the Records The data counts only people who were convicted and sentenced. Acquittals and dismissals are not in it, and the terms are those imposed, not time served. The records do not describe the facts of any case. ### How We Counted Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Western District of New York (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "New York West") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Murder" (82). 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 Western District of New York, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-western-district-of-new-york/) (overview) - [Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Western District of New York, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-western-district-of-new-york/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Western District of New York, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-western-district-of-new-york/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Firearms Sentences in the Western District of New York, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-western-district-of-new-york/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Western District of New York, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-immigration-sentences-western-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.