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# Federal Sexual Abuse Sentences in the District of Montana, FY2016–2025
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-sexual-abuse-sentences-district-of-montana/
- Published: 2026-11-04T11:08:33.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-04T11:08:33.000Z
- Description: In the District of Montana, 144 people were sentenced for sexual abuse offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, and 139 of them (97%) received a prison term. The median prison term was 110 months (9.2 years), compared with 180 months for this offense type in all 94 districts.
- 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 Montana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-district-of-montana/) › Sexual Abuse: District of Montana

**In brief:** In the District of Montana, 144 people were sentenced for sexual abuse offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, and 139 of them (97%) received a prison term. The median prison term was 110 months (9.2 years), compared with 180 months for this offense type in all 94 districts.

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 144 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/).

## Long Prison Terms, Shorter Than the National Median

The median prison term among the 139 people sent to prison was 110 months. A quarter received 180 months or more, and a quarter received 48 months or less. A total of 4 people (3%) received probation only.

In all 94 districts, 12,095 people were sentenced for sexual abuse offenses, and the median prison term was 180 months. The Montana median is lower. For all offenses in Montana, the median was 40 months, so sexual abuse terms were much longer than the district's overall median.

## Trials Were More Common Than for Other Offense Types

A total of 120 people (83%) pleaded guilty, and 24 were convicted after a trial. In all districts, 90% pleaded guilty, and in all Montana offenses, 96% did.

The median prison term was 97 months after a guilty plea and 125 months after a trial, based on 23 people convicted at trial and sent to prison. Among the guilty pleas, 83% had a written plea agreement, and 18% were straight pleas.

## The Most Common Guidelines

The Commission's offense type is "Sexual Abuse." The most common primary guideline was §2A3.1 (Criminal Sexual Abuse), with 50 people. Next was §2G2.1 (Sexually Exploiting a Minor by Production of Sexually Explicit Visual or Printed Material), with 32 people.

Also listed were §2A3.4 (Abusive Sexual Contact or Attempt to Commit Abusive Sexual Contact) with 21 people, and §2A3.2 (Criminal Sexual Abuse of a Minor Under the Age of Sixteen Years (Statutory Rape) or Attempt to Commit Such Acts) with 19 people. Sexual abuse cases were 4% of the 3,524 people sentenced in the district.

## Mandatory Minimums and the Guideline Range

A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 52 of the 143 people with that information recorded, which is 36%.

Of the 144 people, 54 (38%) were sentenced within the guideline range. Another 30 (21%) received a term below the range at the government's request, and 53 (37%) received a term below it without that request. A total of 7 people (5%) were sentenced above the range. In all districts, 41% of sentences were within the range, and for all Montana offenses the share was 33%.

## Supervised Release After Prison

Supervised release was ordered for 139 people (97%), with a median term of 120 months. A total of 23 people (16%) received supervised release for life.

A fine was ordered for 1 person (less than 1%), and restitution for 30 (21%). In criminal history category I, the lowest, 63% of the group were placed, and 3% were in category VI, the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.

## Counts by Fiscal Year

Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 account for 54 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 account for 90 people. The table lists between 10 and 20 people per year. Those counts are small, and the yearly medians, which range from 43.5 months to 180 months, do not by themselves show a trend.

| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
| ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- |
| 2016        | 11               | 43.5 months   | 82%            |
| 2017        | 13               | 114 months    | 77%            |
| 2018        | 15               | 98 months     | 87%            |
| 2019        | 15               | 180 months    | 93%            |
| 2020        | 10               | 54 months     | 90%            |
| 2021        | 14               | 102 months    | 79%            |
| 2022        | 14               | 156 months    | 93%            |
| 2023        | 20               | 96 months     | 90%            |
| 2024        | 18               | 120 months    | 72%            |
| 2025        | 14               | 122.5 months  | 71%            |

## What Cannot Be Learned Here

Malmstrom AFB, Montana, is in this district. Courts-martial are tried in military courts, not in this federal court, and these figures are federal only.

The data counts only people who were convicted and sentenced. Prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served. The records do not describe the facts of any case or the people involved.

### How We Counted

Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of Montana (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Montana") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Sexual Abuse" (144). 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 Montana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-district-of-montana/) (overview)
- [Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of Montana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-district-of-montana/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of Montana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-district-of-montana/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of Montana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-district-of-montana/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Assault Sentences in the District of Montana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-assault-sentences-district-of-montana/) (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.