Federal Obscenity and Other Sex Offense Sentences in the Northern District of West Virginia, FY2016–2025
Of 50 people sentenced for obscenity and other sex offenses in the Northern District of West Virginia in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 49 were failure-to-register cases. 46 (92%) received a prison term, with a median of 22.5 months, compared with 18 months across all 94 federal districts.
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In brief: Of 50 people sentenced for obscenity and other sex offenses in the Northern District of West Virginia in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 49 were failure-to-register cases. 46 (92%) received a prison term, with a median of 22.5 months, compared with 18 months across all 94 federal districts.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 50 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.
Almost Entirely Failure to Register Cases
The U.S. Sentencing Commission's offense type "Obscenity/Other Sex Offenses" is a mixed category. In this district, the only primary guideline listed was §2A3.5 (Failure to Register as a Sex Offender), with 49 people.
Together these cases were 2% of the 2,879 people sentenced in the district. A person who was acquitted or whose case was dismissed would not appear in the Commission's data.
Prison Terms
A total of 46 of the 50 people (92%) received a prison term, and 4 (8%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement. Across all districts, 95% were sent to prison.
Among those sent to prison, the median prison term was 22.5 months. A quarter received 30 months or more, and a quarter received 15 months or less. The all-districts median was 18 months, which is lower than the median here. For all offenses in this district, the median was 37 months.
The court-imposed term is reported here, not the time a person actually served.
Guideline Range Placement
Sentences within the guideline range were 62% (31 people). Above the range were 16% (8). Below the range without a government request were 18% (9), and below the range at the government's request were 4% (2).
Across all districts, 54% of sentences in this offense type were within the range. For all offenses in this district, the figure was 57%.
Straight Pleas Were Common
A total of 49 of 50 people (98%) pleaded guilty, and 1 was convicted after a trial. Among guilty pleas, 59% had a written plea agreement and 39% were straight pleas with no agreement.
The median prison term was 21 months after a guilty plea. The 1 person convicted at trial received 63 months, which says nothing general. No mandatory minimum applied to any of the 50 people (0%).
Supervised Release for Life
Supervised release was ordered for 46 people (92%). The median term was 60 months, and 7 people (14%) received supervised release for life. No fine and no restitution was ordered (0 each).
Criminal history appears only in the federal data. Just 2% of these people were in category I, the lowest, while 16% were in category VI, the highest.
Counts by Fiscal Year
The district sentenced 22 people in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 28 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. The federal fiscal year starts on October 1.
Yearly counts range from 2 to 7, and medians range from 15 months to 41 months. No trend can be read from counts of 2 to 7 people.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 4 | 18 months | 4 of 4 |
| 2017 | 6 | 28.5 months | 6 of 6 |
| 2018 | 7 | 21 months | 7 of 7 |
| 2019 | 5 | 30 months | 5 of 5 |
| 2020 | 7 | 18 months | 7 of 7 |
| 2021 | 2 | 25.5 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2022 | 3 | 15 months | 3 of 3 |
| 2023 | 5 | 41 months | 4 of 5 |
| 2024 | 5 | 21 months | 5 of 5 |
| 2025 | 6 | 27 months | 6 of 6 |
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Northern District of West Virginia (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "W Virginia North") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Obscenity/Other Sex Offenses" (50). 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 Northern District of West Virginia, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Northern District of West Virginia, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Northern District of West Virginia, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Northern District of West Virginia, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Prison Offense Sentences in the Northern District of West 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.