Federal Robbery Sentences in the Northern District of Iowa, FY2016–2025
In the Northern District of Iowa, 41 people were sentenced for robbery in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, and the median prison term was 117 months (9.8 years). For all 94 federal districts the median was 90 months. After a trial the median was 222 months, based on 5 people.
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In brief: In the Northern District of Iowa, 41 people were sentenced for robbery in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, and the median prison term was 117 months (9.8 years). For all 94 federal districts the median was 90 months. After a trial the median was 222 months, based on 5 people.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 41 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.
Robbery Sentences in a Small Group
All 41 people (100%) received a prison term. The median was 117 months. A quarter received 154 months or more, and a quarter received 84 months or less.
In all districts, 14,845 people were sentenced for robbery, 99% were sent to prison, and the median was 90 months. For all offenses in the Northern District of Iowa, the median was 60 months. Robbery cases were 1% of the 3,479 people sentenced in the district over the period. Prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served.
Guilty Pleas Compared With Trials
A total of 36 people (88%) pleaded guilty, and 5 were convicted after a trial. The median prison term was 111 months after a guilty plea and 222 months after a trial.
Both groups are small, and the trial figure rests on 5 people. The data covers only people who were convicted, so it cannot show how cases that ended in an acquittal compare. Among guilty pleas, 75% had a written plea agreement, and 25% were straight pleas with no agreement.
Sentences Against the Guideline Range
A total of 39% (16) were sentenced within the guideline range. Another 22% (9) were below the range at the government's request, and 12% (5) were below it without a government request. 27% (11) were above the range.
In all districts, 40% of robbery sentences were within the range. For all offenses in this district, the figure was 53%.
Mandatory Minimums and Other Orders
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 14 of the 41 people (34%). A mandatory minimum is a floor set by statute.
Supervised release after prison was ordered for all 41 people (100%), with a median term of 36 months. Restitution was ordered for 25 (61%), and no fine was ordered (0). Restitution is money a court orders paid to a victim.
Guidelines and Criminal History
"Robbery" is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's offense type. The primary guideline was §2B3.1 (Robbery) for 40 people, and §2X3.1 (Accessory After the Fact) for 1.
In criminal history, 17% were in the lowest category I and 27% were in the highest category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field, so this post reports federal numbers on their own.
Yearly Counts Are Too Small for Trends
The group has 20 people in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 21 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. Each fiscal year has 2 to 7 people. A fiscal year runs from October 1 through the end of September.
The table shows a median of 451 months in 2024, based on 2 people, and 82 months in 2019, based on 7. Numbers this small can move a great deal with one case, so they should not be read as a trend. The records do not show why the medians differ.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 5 | 154 months | 5 of 5 |
| 2017 | 4 | 112.5 months | 4 of 4 |
| 2018 | 4 | 119 months | 3 of 4 |
| 2019 | 7 | 82 months | 6 of 7 |
| 2020 | 4 | 128 months | 4 of 4 |
| 2021 | 5 | 117 months | 5 of 5 |
| 2022 | 3 | 151 months | 2 of 3 |
| 2023 | 4 | 90 months | 4 of 4 |
| 2024 | 2 | 451 months | 0 of 2 |
| 2025 | 3 | 105 months | 3 of 3 |
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Northern District of Iowa (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Iowa North") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Robbery" (41). 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 Northern District of Iowa, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Northern District of Iowa, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Northern District of Iowa, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Northern District of Iowa, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Northern District of Iowa, 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.