Federal Obscenity and Other Sex Offense Sentences in the District of Arizona, FY2016–2025
All 157 people sentenced in the District of Arizona for obscenity or other sex offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 received a prison term. The median was 18 months, the same as the median for this offense type across all 94 federal districts. Most cases, 154, were sentenced under the failure-to-re
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the District of Arizona, FY2016–2025 › Obscenity and Other Sex Offense: District of Arizona
In brief: All 157 people sentenced in the District of Arizona for obscenity or other sex offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 received a prison term. The median was 18 months, the same as the median for this offense type across all 94 federal districts. Most cases, 154, were sentenced under the failure-to-register guideline.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 157 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.
Failure to Register Dominates This Category
"Obscenity/Other Sex Offenses" is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's offense type. The primary guideline was §2A3.5 (Failure to Register as a Sex Offender) for 154 of the 157 people.
The other 3 were sentenced under §2G3.1 (Importing, Mailing, or Transporting Obscene Matter). The figures on this page are therefore mostly about registration cases, not about obscenity. The records do not describe the facts of any case, such as what led to the registration charge.
Prison Terms
All 157 people (100%) received a prison term, and 0 received probation only. The median prison term was 18 months.
A quarter received 24 months or more, and a quarter received 13 months or less. For all districts, 95% of 3,595 people were sent to prison. For all offenses in this district, the median was 9 months. The terms are those imposed, not time served.
Supervised Release
Supervised release was ordered for 151 people (96%), with a median term of 60 months. A total of 15 people (10%) received supervised release for life.
A fine was ordered for 3 (2%), and restitution for 0 (0%).
Guilty Pleas and Trials
Of the 157 people, 155 (99%) pleaded guilty, and 2 were convicted after a trial. Among guilty pleas, 93% had a written plea agreement and 7% did not.
After a guilty plea, the median prison term was 18 months. After a trial, it was 20.3 months, based on 2 people. 2 cases cannot support a comparison. For all 94 districts, 99% of people sentenced for this offense type pleaded guilty, and for all offenses in this district the figure was more than 99%.
Guideline Range, Mandatory Minimums, and Criminal History
The range was recorded for 157 people. Of those, 57% (89) were within it, 16% (25) were below it at the government's request, and 22% (34) were below it without a request. Another 6% (9) were above it.
For all districts, 54% were within the range. For all offenses in this district, 35% were. A mandatory minimum applied to 0 of the 157 people with that information recorded.
In criminal history, 8% were in the lowest category I and 11% in the highest (VI). Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Yearly Counts
Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 had 59 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 had 98. Yearly counts ranged from 9 to 23. Yearly medians ranged from 15 months to 26 months.
These are small counts, and the records give no reason for the differences. The cases were less than 1% of the 47,716 people sentenced in the district. Courts-martial for Davis-Monthan AFB, Fort Huachuca, Luke AFB, and Marine Corps Air Station Yuma are tried in military courts, not in this federal court.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 19 | 21 months | 100% |
| 2017 | 15 | 26 months | 93% |
| 2018 | 10 | 18.5 months | 100% |
| 2019 | 15 | 18 months | 100% |
| 2020 | 9 | 15 months | 9 of 9 |
| 2021 | 23 | 18 months | 100% |
| 2022 | 17 | 17 months | 94% |
| 2023 | 10 | 18 months | 100% |
| 2024 | 18 | 18 months | 100% |
| 2025 | 21 | 15 months | 100% |
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of Arizona (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Arizona") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Obscenity/Other Sex Offenses" (157). 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.
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 Arizona, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the District of Arizona, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of Arizona, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Drug Possession Sentences in the District of Arizona, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of Arizona, 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.