Federal Robbery Sentences in the Eastern District of Arkansas, FY2016–2025
The Eastern District of Arkansas sentenced 44 people for robbery in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The median prison term was 71.5 months (6 years), below the 90-month median for all 94 districts. 10 sentences (23%) were above the guideline range.
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the Eastern District of Arkansas, FY201 › Robbery: Eastern District of Arkansas
In brief: The Eastern District of Arkansas sentenced 44 people for robbery in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The median prison term was 71.5 months (6 years), below the 90-month median for all 94 districts. 10 sentences (23%) were above the guideline range.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 44 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.
Sentences Above the Guideline Range
A guideline range is the span of sentence lengths the Sentencing Commission's rules calculate for a case. In this group, 19 sentences (43%) were within that span, and 10 (23%) were above it. Another 8 (18%) were below it at the government's request, and 7 (16%) were below it without a request.
Across all districts, 40% of robbery sentences were within the span. For every offense in this district, the figure was 55%.
Median Prison Terms
42 of the 44 people (95%) went to prison. Their median was 71.5 months. The highest quarter received 117.8 months or more, and the lowest quarter received 46 months or less.
The all-district robbery median is 90 months, and the median for all offenses in this district is 50 months. Probation alone was the sentence for 2 people (5%). In all districts, 99% of 14,845 robbery sentences included prison. All terms are sentences imposed, not time served.
Mandatory Minimums
8 of the 44 people (18%) faced a mandatory minimum prison term, which is a sentence floor set by statute for the charge of conviction.
The Commission's offense type "Robbery" is drawn from the primary guideline of each case. All 44 people fall under §2B3.1 (Robbery), and together they are less than 1% of the 4,942 people sentenced in the district.
Guilty Pleas and the Lone Trial
43 people (98%) pleaded guilty. 1 person was convicted at trial and received 210 months. The median after a guilty plea was 71 months.
A single trial cannot be set against 43 pleas. Of the guilty pleas, 95% were made under written agreements. The all-district share of guilty pleas for robbery was 95%.
Terms After Release and Criminal History
Supervised release followed prison for 42 people (95%), with a median length of 36 months. Restitution was ordered for 33 (75%) and no one was fined.
On the Commission's criminal history scale, 11% of the group were in the lowest category and 16% in the highest. The military justice system does not record this measure.
Yearly Totals
There were 26 people in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 18 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. No year had more than 10. Medians in the table run from 43.5 months to 173.5 months, with n/a in 2020 because only 1 person was sentenced that year. The totals are too small to show a trend.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 10 | 76.5 months | 90% |
| 2017 | 4 | 108.5 months | 4 of 4 |
| 2018 | 6 | 49 months | 6 of 6 |
| 2019 | 6 | 43.5 months | 6 of 6 |
| 2020 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
| 2021 | 2 | 108 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2022 | 2 | 116 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2023 | 4 | 173.5 months | 4 of 4 |
| 2024 | 2 | 61 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2025 | 7 | 72 months | 7 of 7 |
What Cannot Be Learned Here
Little Rock AFB, Arkansas, is in the district, but courts-martial are held in military courts and are not part of these numbers.
The records include only people who were convicted and sentenced. They say nothing about acquittals, dismissals, or what happened during any robbery.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Eastern District of Arkansas (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Arkansas East") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Robbery" (44). 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 (the background article)
- Federal Prosecution Analysis (all federal posts)
- How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built (sources and method)
- Federal Sentences in the Eastern District of Arkansas, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Eastern District of Arkansas, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Eastern District of Arkansas, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Prison Offense Sentences in the Eastern District of Arkansas, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Eastern District of Arkansas, 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.