Federal Robbery Sentences in the Southern District of Texas, FY2016–2025
In the Southern District of Texas, 531 people were sentenced for robbery in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The median prison term was 120 months (10 years), compared with 90 months across all districts. The median after a trial was 346 months, based on 21 people.
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In brief: In the Southern District of Texas, 531 people were sentenced for robbery in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The median prison term was 120 months (10 years), compared with 90 months across all districts. The median after a trial was 346 months, based on 21 people.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 531 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.
A Median of 120 Months
Of the 531 people, 528 (more than 99%) received a prison term, and 3 (less than 1%) received probation only. One person received a life sentence.
The median prison term was 120 months. A quarter received 174 months or more, and a quarter received 72 months or less. Across all 94 federal districts, 14,845 people were sentenced for robbery, 99% were sent to prison, and the median prison term was 90 months. The median in this district was higher than the national figure.
For all offenses in the Southern District of Texas, the median prison term was 13 months.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 48 | 145 months | 96% |
| 2017 | 32 | 130 months | 91% |
| 2018 | 48 | 134 months | 92% |
| 2019 | 56 | 137.5 months | 96% |
| 2020 | 58 | 109 months | 98% |
| 2021 | 43 | 117 months | 98% |
| 2022 | 54 | 121 months | 96% |
| 2023 | 94 | 114 months | 99% |
| 2024 | 50 | 118.5 months | 98% |
| 2025 | 48 | 95.5 months | 92% |
A Small Share of the District's Cases
Robbery cases were less than 1% of the 71,026 people sentenced in the district in these years. Robbery is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's offense type. Nearly all of these cases, 526, used §2B3.1 (Robbery) as the primary guideline.
The remaining primary guidelines were §2X1.1 (Attempt, Solicitation, or Conspiracy (Not Covered by a Specific Offense Guideline)) with 3 people and §2X3.1 (Accessory After the Fact) with 2.
Mandatory Minimums and Criminal History
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 320 of the 531 people with that information recorded (60%). The data does not show which statute set each minimum.
In criminal history, 29% were in the lowest category and 12% were in the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field, so the military side has no matching measure.
Plea and Trial Comparison
A total of 510 people (96%) pleaded guilty, and 21 were convicted after a trial. The median prison term after a guilty plea was 120 months. After a trial, it was 346 months, based on 21 people convicted at trial and sent to prison.
Among the guilty pleas, 75% had a written plea agreement and 25% were straight pleas. Nationally, 95% of robbery cases ended in a guilty plea. The 21 trial cases are a small group, and the records do not show how they differed from the plea cases.
Against the Guideline Range
The guideline range is the sentencing range calculated under the Commission's guidelines. Of the 531 people, 51% (270) were sentenced within the range. Below the range at the government's request were 22% (117), and below it without a request were 22% (117). Above the range were 5% (27).
Across all districts, 40% of robbery sentences were within the range. For all offenses in this district, the figure was 58%.
After Prison, and Over the Years
Supervised release after prison was ordered for 507 people (95%), with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 16 (3%), and restitution for 322 (61%).
Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 had 184 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 had 347. The yearly median ranges from 95.5 months in fiscal year 2025 to 145 months in fiscal year 2016. The records do not show what drove the change.
Only people who were convicted and sentenced are counted. Acquittals, dismissals, and uncharged cases are not in the data, and prison terms are those imposed, not time served.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Southern District of Texas (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Texas South") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Robbery" (531). 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 Southern District of Texas, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Southern District of Texas, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Southern District of Texas, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Southern District of Texas, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Southern District of Texas, 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.