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# Federal Sexual Abuse Sentences in the District of Colorado, FY2016–2025
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-sexual-abuse-sentences-district-of-colorado/
- Published: 2026-11-04T11:09:42.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-04T11:09:42.000Z
- Description: In the District of Colorado, 64 of 65 people sentenced for sexual abuse offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 received a prison term, with a median of 208 months (17.3 years). The median for all 94 districts was 180 months. 1 person received a life sentence, and 11 (17%) received supervised release
- 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 Colorado, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-district-of-colorado/) › Sexual Abuse: District of Colorado

**In brief:** In the District of Colorado, 64 of 65 people sentenced for sexual abuse offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 received a prison term, with a median of 208 months (17.3 years). The median for all 94 districts was 180 months. 1 person received a life sentence, and 11 (17%) received supervised release for life.

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 65 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/).

## Very Long Prison Terms

Of the 65 people sentenced, 64 (98%) received a prison term, and 1 (2%) received probation only. Across all districts, more than 99% were sent to prison.

The median prison term in Colorado was 208 months (17.3 years). A quarter received 306 months or more, and a quarter received 120 months or less. 1 person received a life sentence. The median for all districts was 180 months, and the median for all offenses in the District of Colorado was 36 months.

Time served is not measured here.

## The Offense Type and Its Guidelines

"Sexual Abuse" is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's name for an offense type. It is assigned by the main guideline used at sentencing, and it covers several kinds of sex offenses.

In Colorado, the most common primary guideline was §2G2.1 (Sexually Exploiting a Minor by Production of Sexually Explicit Visual or Printed Material), with 35 people. Next were §2A3.1 (Criminal Sexual Abuse), with 15, and §2G1.3 (Promoting a Commercial Sex Act or Prohibited Sexual Conduct with a Minor), with 9\. A further 4 were sentenced under §2A3.4 (Abusive Sexual Contact or Attempt to Commit Abusive Sexual Contact).

These cases were 2% of the 4,231 people sentenced in the district.

## Pleas, Trials, and Mandatory Minimums

A total of 57 of 65 people (88%) pleaded guilty, and 8 were convicted after a trial. For all districts, 90% pleaded guilty. Among the guilty pleas in Colorado, 100% had a written plea agreement.

The median prison term was 202 months after a guilty plea and 208 months after a trial. The trial figure rests on 8 people.

A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 39 of the 65 people (60%).

## Sentences Against the Guideline Range

Judges calculate a guideline range under the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and then choose a sentence. In 28 of the 65 cases (43%) the sentence was within that range, compared with 41% for all districts.

A sentence below the range without a government request was given to 29 (45%). A sentence below the range at the government's request was given to 6 (9%). A sentence above the range was given to 2 (3%).

For all offenses in the District of Colorado, 36% of sentences were within the range.

## Supervised Release After Prison

Supervised release after prison was ordered for 64 people (98%). The median term was 120 months, and 11 people (17%) received supervised release for life.

No fine was ordered (0%), and restitution was ordered for 6 people (9%).

In criminal history, 62% were in the lowest category, Category I, and 5% were in the highest, Category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.

## Counts by Fiscal Year

The district sentenced 35 people in this offense type in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 30 people in fiscal years 2020 to 2025\. A fiscal year starts on October 1.

Yearly counts range from 2 to 12 people. The yearly medians in the table, from 102 months in 2021 to 249 months in 2016, rest on very small groups and do not show a trend.

| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
| ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- |
| 2016        | 10               | 249 months    | 100%           |
| 2017        | 10               | 246 months    | 90%            |
| 2018        | 3                | 135 months    | 3 of 3         |
| 2019        | 12               | 132 months    | 83%            |
| 2020        | 4                | 238 months    | 1 of 4         |
| 2021        | 2                | 102 months    | 2 of 2         |
| 2022        | 6                | 240 months    | 6 of 6         |
| 2023        | 6                | 210 months    | 5 of 6         |
| 2024        | 4                | 192 months    | 3 of 4         |
| 2025        | 8                | 202 months    | 8 of 8         |

## What the Records Cannot Show

The Commission's figures cover convictions only. A person whose case ended in an acquittal or a dismissal was never sentenced and is not counted.

The court-martial data on this site includes Buckley SFB, Fort Carson, Peterson SFB, and the U.S. Air Force Academy, all located in this district. A military court tries a court-martial, so none of those cases came before the district court. No record connects an installation to the federal cases above.

### How We Counted

Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of Colorado (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Colorado") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Sexual Abuse" (65). 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 Colorado, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-district-of-colorado/) (overview)
- [Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of Colorado, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-district-of-colorado/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of Colorado, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-district-of-colorado/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the District of Colorado, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-immigration-sentences-district-of-colorado/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of Colorado, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-district-of-colorado/) (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.