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# Federal Obscenity and Other Sex Offense Sentences in the Southern District of Texas, FY2016–2025
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-obscenity-other-sex-offenses-sentences-southern-district-of-texas/
- Published: 2026-11-04T10:07:51.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-04T10:07:51.000Z
- Description: In the Southern District of Texas, 98 people were sentenced under the Commission's "Obscenity/Other Sex Offenses" type in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, and 74 of them had failure to register as a sex offender as the primary guideline. The median prison term was 18 months, the same as the national media
- 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 Texas, FY2016–](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-southern-district-of-texas/) › Obscenity and Other Sex Offense: Southern District of Texas

**In brief:** In the Southern District of Texas, 98 people were sentenced under the Commission's "Obscenity/Other Sex Offenses" type in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, and 74 of them had failure to register as a sex offender as the primary guideline. The median prison term was 18 months, the same as the national median.

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 98 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/).

## Most Cases Involved Failure to Register

This offense type is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's category for sex offenses that do not fall in its other sex offense types. The most common primary guideline was §2A3.5 (Failure to Register as a Sex Offender), with 74 people.

The next most common was §2G3.1 (Importing, Mailing, or Transporting Obscene Matter), with 22\. These cases were less than 1% of the 71,026 people sentenced in the district. All 94 districts together sentenced 3,595 people in this type.

## Prison Terms

Of the 98 people, 96 (98%) received a prison term, and 1 (1%) received probation only. The median prison term was 18 months. A quarter received 26.2 months or more, and a quarter received 13.1 months or less.

In all districts, 95% were sent to prison, with the same 18-month median. The median for every offense in this district was 13 months.

| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
| ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- |
| 2016        | 14               | 18.5 months   | 93%            |
| 2017        | 8                | 22.5 months   | 8 of 8         |
| 2018        | 18               | 18 months     | 94%            |
| 2019        | 15               | 18 months     | 93%            |
| 2020        | 4                | 18 months     | 4 of 4         |
| 2021        | 4                | 19.5 months   | 4 of 4         |
| 2022        | 10               | 18 months     | 100%           |
| 2023        | 8                | 20.5 months   | 8 of 8         |
| 2024        | 9                | 13.2 months   | 9 of 9         |
| 2025        | 8                | 16 months     | 8 of 8         |

## Supervised Release Terms Were Long

Supervised release after prison was ordered for 90 people (92%). The median term was 60 months, and 1 person (1%) received supervised release for life.

A fine was ordered for 4 people (4%), and restitution for 0\. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 1 of the 97 people with that information recorded (1%).

## Guilty Pleas and Trials

A total of 95 people (97%) pleaded guilty, and 3 were convicted after a trial. The national guilty plea rate was 99%. In this district, 56% of guilty pleas had a written plea agreement and 44% were straight pleas.

The median prison term after a guilty plea was 18 months. After a trial, it was 41 months, based on 3 people. A group of 3 is too small for a reliable comparison.

## Against the Guideline Range

The guidelines produce a sentencing range for each case. For 60 of the 98 people (61%), the sentence was within that range. Below the range at the government's request were 3% (3), and below it without a request were 28% (27). Above the range were 8% (8).

The national share within the range was 54%, and the share for all offenses in this district was 58%.

## Criminal History and Counts by Period

In criminal history, 27% were in the lowest category and 7% were in the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.

Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 had 55 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 had 43\. Yearly groups range from 4 to 18 people, so the yearly medians in the table are not a trend.

## What the Data Leaves Out

The records leave out anyone who was acquitted, had a case dismissed, or was never charged. They give prison terms as imposed, not as served. They also say nothing about the facts behind any registration or obscenity charge.

### How We Counted

Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Southern District of Texas (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Texas South") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Obscenity/Other Sex Offenses" (98). 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 Texas, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-southern-district-of-texas/) (overview)
- [Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Southern District of Texas, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-immigration-sentences-southern-district-of-texas/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Southern District of Texas, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-southern-district-of-texas/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Firearms Sentences in the Southern District of Texas, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-southern-district-of-texas/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Southern District of Texas, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-southern-district-of-texas/) (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.