Federal Stalking and Harassment Sentences in the District of Vermont, FY2016–2025
Of the 10 people sentenced in the District of Vermont for stalking or harassing offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 9 received a prison term and 1 received probation only. The median prison term was 14 months, compared with 24 months for the same offense type across all 94 federal districts. All
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the District of Vermont, FY2016–2025 › Stalking and Harassment: District of Vermont
In brief: Of the 10 people sentenced in the District of Vermont for stalking or harassing offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 9 received a prison term and 1 received probation only. The median prison term was 14 months, compared with 24 months for the same offense type across all 94 federal districts. All 10 pleaded guilty.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 10 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.
Shorter Prison Terms Than the National Figure
The U.S. Sentencing Commission places these cases in its offense type "Stalking/Harassing." In Vermont, 9 of the 10 people (90%) were sent to prison, and the median prison term was 14 months. A quarter received 20 months or more, and a quarter received 0 months or less.
Across all 94 districts, the same offense type covers 2,263 people. Of those, 89% were sent to prison, and the median prison term was 24 months. The Vermont median is lower, but the Vermont group has only 10 people, so a change in a single case can move it.
Which Guidelines Applied
The Commission lists a primary guideline for each case. In Vermont, 6 of the 10 cases were sentenced primarily under §2A6.1 (Threatening or Harassing Communications). Another 3 were sentenced under §2A6.2 (Stalking or Domestic Violence).
The offense type is the Commission's own grouping. It is not the same as a single statute, and it can include several different charges.
Sentences Against the Guideline Range
Only 20% of the sentences (2) were within the guideline range. Another 50% (5) were below the range at the government's request, and 30% (3) were below the range without a government request. None was above the range.
For all offenses in the District of Vermont, 21% of sentences were within the range. For the stalking and harassing offense type across all districts, the figure was 47%. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 0 of the 9 people with that information recorded.
Pleas and Plea Agreements
All 10 people pleaded guilty, and 0 were convicted after a trial. Among the guilty pleas, 90% had a written plea agreement, and 0% were straight pleas with no agreement.
Nationwide, guilty pleas were 92% for this offense type. In the District of Vermont, guilty pleas were 99% for all offenses together. The Commission's data includes only people who were convicted and sentenced, so acquittals and dismissals are not counted.
Supervised Release, Fines, and Restitution
Supervised release after prison was ordered for 9 people (90%), with a median term of 24 months. A fine was ordered for 1 person (10%), and restitution was ordered for 1 person (10%).
Prison terms in this data are the terms imposed, not time served.
Criminal History and Year-by-Year Counts
Among the 10 people, 50% were in the lowest criminal history category, category I, and 30% were in the highest, category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
These cases were less than 1% of the 1,619 people sentenced in the District of Vermont in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 account for 5 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 account for 5 people. The table shows the years with cases, each of which has 1 to 3 people. Counts this small do not show a trend.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 2 | 11.1 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2018 | 3 | 20.5 months | 3 of 3 |
| 2021 | 1 | 15.4 months | 1 of 1 |
| 2022 | 2 | 10.7 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2023 | 2 | 10 months | 2 of 2 |
Limits of the Records
The records do not describe the conduct in any case, the charges that were dropped, or people who were never sentenced. They also do not show what the all-districts comparison would look like for a group of the same size and makeup. The figures report federal numbers on their own.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of Vermont (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Vermont") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Stalking/Harassing" (10). 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.
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 District of Vermont, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of Vermont, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of Vermont, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the District of Vermont, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of Vermont, 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.