> ## Content Index
> Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.bodiesburied.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further.

# Federal Robbery Sentences in the District of Montana, FY2016–2025
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-robbery-sentences-district-of-montana/
- Published: 2026-11-04T11:08:37.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-04T11:08:37.000Z
- Description: All 38 people sentenced for robbery in the District of Montana in fiscal years 2017 to 2025 received prison, and all 38 were ordered to serve supervised release. The median prison term was 83 months (6.9 years), against 90 months for robbery across all 94 districts.
- 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 District of Montana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-district-of-montana/) › Robbery: District of Montana

**In brief:** All 38 people sentenced for robbery in the District of Montana in fiscal years 2017 to 2025 received prison, and all 38 were ordered to serve supervised release. The median prison term was 83 months (6.9 years), against 90 months for robbery across all 94 districts.

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 38 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/).

## Prison for Everyone, Supervision Afterward

No robbery case in the group ended with probation only. Each of the 38 people received a prison term and then supervised release, with a median supervised release term of 36 months.

Robbery made up 1% of the 3,524 people sentenced in the district in fiscal years 2016 to 2025\. The records for this group begin in fiscal year 2017\. The group is small, so every percentage in this post rests on 38 people or fewer.

## Median Terms and the Quartiles

The median prison term was 83 months. A quarter of the people received 123.8 months or more, and a quarter received 36.2 months or less.

Nationwide, 14,845 people were sentenced for robbery, 99% went to prison, and the median was 90 months. Montana's all-offense median of 40 months is much shorter than its robbery median.

## Mandatory Minimum Sentences

Exactly 19 of the 38 people (50%) faced a mandatory minimum. Under the Commission's "Robbery" offense type, 37 cases used guideline §2B3.1 (Robbery), and 1 used §2X3.1 (Accessory After the Fact).

## Guilty Pleas Versus Trials

Of the 38, 34 pleaded guilty (89%) and 4 were convicted at trial. Guilty pleas carried a median of 72 months, while trials carried 122.5 months across just 4 people.

Written plea agreements appeared in 76% of the guilty pleas, and 24% were straight pleas. Guilty pleas were 95% of robbery cases nationally and 96% of all Montana cases.

## Where Sentences Fell Relative to the Range

Within the guideline range: 15 people (39%). Below at the government's request: 8 (21%). Below without that request: 14 (37%). Above the range: 1 (3%).

Nationally, 40% of robbery sentences were within the range, about the same as in Montana. All Montana offenses together had 33%.

## Restitution and Criminal History

Judges ordered restitution for 20 people (53%) and fines for none. Category I, the lowest criminal history category, held 21% of the group, and category VI, the highest, held 8%. The military records have no criminal history field.

## Yearly Counts

Sentencing totals were 20 people across fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 18 across 2020 to 2025\. In the table, annual counts run from 2 to 8, and 2022 has no row. Because the groups are so small, one year cannot be fairly compared with another, and the medians cannot show a trend.

| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
| ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- |
| 2017        | 6                | 114 months    | 6 of 6         |
| 2018        | 6                | 46.5 months   | 6 of 6         |
| 2019        | 8                | 106.5 months  | 5 of 8         |
| 2020        | 4                | 108.5 months  | 3 of 4         |
| 2021        | 2                | 127.5 months  | 2 of 2         |
| 2023        | 5                | 120 months    | 5 of 5         |
| 2024        | 5                | 63 months     | 5 of 5         |
| 2025        | 2                | 46.5 months   | 2 of 2         |

## Gaps in the Records

Malmstrom AFB, Montana, is within the district, but its court-martial cases belong to military courts and are not included.

Only people convicted and sentenced are counted. Terms shown are imposed terms, not served. No weapon, injury, or case facts appear in the data, and the records do not show how any case was investigated.

### How We Counted

Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of Montana (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Montana") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Robbery" (38). 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 District of Montana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-district-of-montana/) (overview)
- [Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of Montana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-district-of-montana/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of Montana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-district-of-montana/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of Montana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-district-of-montana/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Assault Sentences in the District of Montana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-assault-sentences-district-of-montana/) (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.