Federal Other Offense Sentences in the Central District of Illinois, FY2016–2025
In the Central District of Illinois, 23 people were sentenced in the Commission's "Other" offense category in fiscal years 2016 to 2024. Of these, 13 (57%) received a prison term and 8 (35%) received probation only. The median prison term was 2 months.
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In brief: In the Central District of Illinois, 23 people were sentenced in the Commission's "Other" offense category in fiscal years 2016 to 2024. Of these, 13 (57%) received a prison term and 8 (35%) received probation only. The median prison term was 2 months.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 23 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.
Short Prison Terms and Frequent Probation
Prison terms went to 13 of the 23 people (57%), and 8 (35%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement. Among those sent to prison, the median term was 2 months.
A quarter received 12 months or more, and a quarter received 0.3 months or less. Across all 94 districts, 9,918 people were sentenced in this category, 38% were sent to prison, and the median term was 0.2 months. The median for all offenses in the district was 70 months.
A Catch-All Category
"Other" is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's offense type for cases that do not fit its named categories, assigned from the primary guideline. The data for this category runs through fiscal year 2024.
The most common guideline was §2D2.2 (Acquiring a Controlled Substance by Forgery, Fraud, Deception, or Subterfuge), with 6 people. Next were §2D1.11 (Unlawfully Distributing, Importing, Exporting or Possessing a Listed Chemical) with 4 and §2X5.2 (Class A Misdemeanors (Not Covered by Another Specific Offense Guideline)) with 2.
Position Against the Guideline Range
The Commission recorded the position for 13 people. Within the range were 85% (11 people), and below the range at the government's request were 15% (2). None was above the range or below it without a government request.
Across all districts, 90% of sentences in this category were within the range, and for all offenses in the district the figure was 36%. The district's share was lower than the first figure and higher than the second.
Pleas and Mandatory Minimums
Of the 23 people, 22 (96%) pleaded guilty and 1 was convicted after a trial. The median prison term after a guilty plea was 2 months, and after the trial it was 12 months.
Among the guilty pleas, 41% had a written plea agreement and 36% were straight pleas with no agreement. No mandatory minimum applied to any of the 11 people with that information recorded.
Fiscal Year Counts
The federal fiscal year begins on October 1 and ends the following September. In fiscal years 2016 to 2019, 15 people were sentenced, and in fiscal years 2020 to 2025 there were 8.
Yearly counts run from 1 to 6 people, and some medians are listed as "n/a" for lack of data. The 30-month medians in fiscal years 2016 and 2017 rest on 2 and 6 people. The records cannot show a trend from counts this small.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 2 | 30.2 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2017 | 6 | 30 months | 6 of 6 |
| 2018 | 5 | 4 months | 5 of 5 |
| 2019 | 2 | n/a | 2 of 2 |
| 2020 | 2 | 0 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2021 | 2 | 6.1 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2022 | 2 | 1 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2023 | 1 | 12 months | 0 of 1 |
| 2024 | 1 | 0.3 months | 1 of 1 |
Fines, Supervision, and Criminal History
A fine was ordered for 10 people (43%), and restitution for 1 (4%). Supervised release after prison was ordered for 7 (30%), with a median term of 24 months.
In criminal history, 38% were in the lowest category, category I, and 15% were in the highest, category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
What the Records Do Not Show
Only people who were convicted and sentenced are counted. Acquittals and dismissals are not in the data, and prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served.
These cases were less than 1% of the 2,440 people sentenced in the district in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The records do not describe the facts of any case.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Central District of Illinois (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Illinois Cent") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Other" (23). 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 Central District of Illinois, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Central District of Illinois, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Central District of Illinois, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Central District of Illinois, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Child Pornography Sentences in the Central District of Illinois, 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.