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# Federal Other Offense Sentences in the Southern District of Texas, FY2016–2025
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-other-sentences-southern-district-of-texas/
- Published: 2026-11-04T10:07:59.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-04T10:07:59.000Z
- Description: The Southern District of Texas sentenced 33 people in the U.S. Sentencing Commission's "Other" offense type in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The median prison term was 6 months, and all 33 pleaded guilty. Because "Other" groups unrelated offenses, the numbers do not describe one kind of crime.
- 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/) › Other Offense: Southern District of Texas

**In brief:** The Southern District of Texas sentenced 33 people in the U.S. Sentencing Commission's "Other" offense type in fiscal years 2016 to 2025\. The median prison term was 6 months, and all 33 pleaded guilty. Because "Other" groups unrelated offenses, the numbers do not describe one kind of crime.

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 33 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/).

## What the Other Category Means

The Commission uses "Other" for cases that do not fit its named offense types. The group is a mix, so a single median or plea rate describes no one offense.

The most common primary guideline here was §2A5.2 (Interference with Flight Crew Member or Flight Attendant), with 11 people. Another 3 had §2D2.2 (Acquiring a Controlled Substance by Forgery, Fraud, Deception, or Subterfuge). Both §2D1.13 (Structuring Chemical Transactions or Creating a Chemical Mixture to Evade Reporting or Recordkeeping Requirements) and §2X5.2 (Class A Misdemeanors (Not Covered by Another Specific Offense Guideline)) had 1 person.

## Prison Terms and Probation

Of the 33 people, 25 (76%) received a prison term, and 8 (24%) received probation only. The median prison term was 6 months. A quarter received 18 months or more, and a quarter received 0.2 months or less.

All 94 districts together sentenced 9,918 people in this category. Of those, 38% were sent to prison, and the median prison term was 0.2 months. This district's share sent to prison was higher, and so was its median. The median for all offenses here was 13 months.

| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
| ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- |
| 2016        | 1                | 10.8 months   | 1 of 1         |
| 2017        | 5                | 0.2 months    | 5 of 5         |
| 2018        | 3                | 7.5 months    | 3 of 3         |
| 2019        | 6                | 18 months     | 6 of 6         |
| 2020        | 2                | 6.3 months    | 2 of 2         |
| 2021        | 2                | 10 months     | 2 of 2         |
| 2022        | 3                | 19.8 months   | 3 of 3         |
| 2023        | 4                | 15 months     | 4 of 4         |
| 2024        | 2                | 40.5 months   | 2 of 2         |
| 2025        | 5                | 0 months      | 5 of 5         |

## Pleas

All 33 people pleaded guilty, and 0 were convicted after a trial. Guilty pleas were 98% in all districts. Among the guilty pleas here, 61% had a written plea agreement and 39% were straight pleas.

A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 1 of the 26 people with that information recorded (4%).

## The Guideline Range

Of 31 people with this information, 22 (71%) were sentenced within the guideline range. Below the range at the government's request was 1 person (3%), and below it without a request were 6 (19%). Above the range were 2 (6%).

In all districts, 90% of sentences in this category were within the range. For all offenses in this district, 58% were.

## Supervised Release, Fines, and Criminal History

Supervised release after prison was ordered for 18 people (55%), with a median term of 24 months. A fine was ordered for 4 (12%), and restitution for 4 (12%).

In criminal history, 80% were in the lowest category and 3% were in the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.

## Yearly Counts and Limits

Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 had 15 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 had 18\. Every year had between 1 and 6 people. The yearly medians range from 0 months to 40.5 months, which says little about change over time.

The data covers only people who were convicted and sentenced, and it leaves out acquittals, dismissals, and uncharged cases. It does not show what conduct any case involved.

### 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 "Other" (33). 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.