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# Federal Robbery Sentences in the District of Vermont, FY2016–2025
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-robbery-sentences-district-of-vermont/
- Published: 2026-11-04T11:13:10.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-04T11:13:10.000Z
- Description: 31 people were sentenced for robbery in the District of Vermont in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, and all 31 received a prison term. The median prison term was 48 months, or 4 years. For robbery in all 94 districts, the median was 90 months.
- 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 Vermont, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-district-of-vermont/) › Robbery: District of Vermont

**In brief:** 31 people were sentenced for robbery in the District of Vermont in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, and all 31 received a prison term. The median prison term was 48 months, or 4 years. For robbery in all 94 districts, the median was 90 months.

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 31 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/).

## All Received Prison Terms

The Commission's "Robbery" offense type was 2% of the 1,619 people sentenced in the district. 31 of 31 (100%) received a prison term, and none received probation only. A quarter received 73 months or more, and a quarter received 27 months or less.

For robbery in all 94 districts, the Commission counts 14,845 people. 99% were sent to prison, and the median prison term was 90 months. The Vermont median was lower than the national median, and higher than the 18 months for all offenses in the district.

## Sentences Against the Guideline Range

Only 13% of sentences (4 people) were within the guideline range. 61% (19) were below the range at the government's request, 23% (7) were below the range without a government request, and 3% (1) was above the range.

For robbery in all districts, 40% of sentences were within the range. For all offenses in this district, the figure was 21%. The primary guideline was §2B3.1 (Robbery) for all 31 people. The guideline range is the recommended sentence calculated under the federal sentencing guidelines. A sentence below the range at the government's request is one the prosecutor asked for. A sentence below the range without that request was set by the court on its own.

## Every Person Pleaded Guilty

All 31 people (100%) pleaded guilty, and each plea had a written plea agreement. No one was convicted after a trial, so the data has no trial prison term to set beside the guilty-plea figures.

A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 1 of the 31 people (3%). All 31 were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, with a median term of 36 months. Restitution was ordered for 24 people (77%). No fine was ordered.

## Criminal History

32% of the group were in the highest criminal history category, category VI, and 16% were in the lowest, category I. Court-martial records have no criminal history field, so the military records give no matching measure.

## Counts by Year

Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 account for 9 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 account for 22\. A fiscal year runs from October 1 to the end of September. The table has no row for 2019, since the data lists no robbery cases that year. Each listed year has between 2 and 6 people. Yearly medians range from 12 months in 2024 to 88 months in 2018\. These are small groups, and the records do not show a trend or its cause.

| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
| ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- |
| 2016        | 3                | 32 months     | 3 of 3         |
| 2017        | 4                | 58 months     | 4 of 4         |
| 2018        | 2                | 88 months     | 2 of 2         |
| 2020        | 2                | 64.5 months   | 2 of 2         |
| 2021        | 2                | 43 months     | 2 of 2         |
| 2022        | 3                | 42 months     | 3 of 3         |
| 2023        | 6                | 66.5 months   | 6 of 6         |
| 2024        | 6                | 12 months     | 6 of 6         |
| 2025        | 3                | 49 months     | 3 of 3         |

## What the Records Cannot Show

The data counts only people who were convicted and sentenced. It reports terms imposed, not time served. It does not describe the facts of any robbery, whether a weapon was used, or the reasons for any sentence.

### How We Counted

Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of Vermont (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Vermont") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Robbery" (31). 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 Vermont, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-district-of-vermont/) (overview)
- [Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of Vermont, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-district-of-vermont/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of Vermont, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-district-of-vermont/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the District of Vermont, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-immigration-sentences-district-of-vermont/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of Vermont, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-district-of-vermont/) (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.