Federal Other Offense Sentences in the Southern District of West Virginia, FY2016–2025
In the Southern District of West Virginia, 17 of the 25 people in the Commission's "Other" offense type (68%) received probation only, and 6 (24%) received a prison term. The median prison term was 6 months. Of the 25 sentences, 24 (96%) were within the guideline range.
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In brief: In the Southern District of West Virginia, 17 of the 25 people in the Commission's "Other" offense type (68%) received probation only, and 6 (24%) received a prison term. The median prison term was 6 months. Of the 25 sentences, 24 (96%) were within the guideline range.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 25 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.
Probation Only Was the Most Common Sentence
Of the 25 people sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 17 (68%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement. Another 6 (24%) received a prison term.
For all 94 districts in this offense type, 38% were sent to prison. The share sent to prison here was lower. Among those sent to prison in this district, the median prison term was 6 months. A quarter received 10.5 months or more, and a quarter received 6 months or less. The median for all 94 districts is 0.2 months. Prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served.
What Is in the Other Category?
"Other" is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's catch-all offense type, not a charge. In this district it is mostly one guideline. The primary guideline was §2D2.2 (Acquiring a Controlled Substance by Forgery, Fraud, Deception, or Subterfuge) for 21 people.
2 people had §2D1.13 (Structuring Chemical Transactions or Creating a Chemical Mixture to Evade Reporting or Recordkeeping Requirements) as the primary guideline. One person had §2X5.2 (Class A Misdemeanors (Not Covered by Another Specific Offense Guideline)). These cases were 1% of the 2,416 people sentenced in the district.
Almost Every Sentence Was Within the Range
The guideline range is the range the federal guidelines calculate for each case. Of the 25 sentences, 24 (96%) were within the range and 1 (4%) was above it. None was below the range.
For all districts in this offense type, 90% of sentences were within the range. For all offenses in this district the figure is 51%. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 0 of the 25 people with that information recorded (0%).
Guilty Pleas and the One Trial
Of the 25 people, 24 (96%) pleaded guilty and 1 was convicted after a trial. The median prison term was 6 months after a guilty plea. The trial figure is 12 months, based on 1 person, and shows no pattern.
Across all districts, 98% pleaded guilty in this offense type, and for all offenses in this district the figure is 97%. Among the guilty pleas, 92% had a written plea agreement and 8% were straight pleas with no agreement.
Supervised Release, Fines, and Criminal History
Supervised release after prison was ordered for 6 people (24%), with a median term of 12 months. A fine was ordered for 5 (20%), and restitution for 3 (12%).
In criminal history, 92% were in the lowest category, category I, and 0% were in the highest, category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Small Counts by Year
The district sentenced 19 people in this offense type in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 6 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. The largest year was 2017, with 11 people and a median of 4.5 months. 3 years show "n/a" because a median could not be reported for them.
Most years have 3 or fewer people, so the table is not a trend. The Commission counts only people who were convicted and sentenced, so acquittals and dismissals are not in the data.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 3 | 12 months | 2 of 3 |
| 2017 | 11 | 4.5 months | 100% |
| 2018 | 2 | n/a | 2 of 2 |
| 2019 | 3 | 6 months | 3 of 3 |
| 2020 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
| 2021 | 2 | n/a | 2 of 2 |
| 2023 | 1 | 6 months | 1 of 1 |
| 2025 | 2 | 24 months | 2 of 2 |
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Southern District of West Virginia (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "W Virginia South") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Other" (25). 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 Southern District of West Virginia, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Southern District of West Virginia, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Southern District of West Virginia, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Southern District of West Virginia, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Prison Offense Sentences in the Southern 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.