Federal Stalking and Harassment Sentences in the Southern District of Georgia, FY2016–2025
The U.S. Sentencing Commission recorded 12 people sentenced for stalking or harassing offenses in the Southern District of Georgia in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 11 (92%) received a prison term, and the median was 15 months. Across all 94 districts, the median was 24 months.
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the Southern District of Georgia, FY201 › Stalking and Harassment: Southern District of Georgia
In brief: The U.S. Sentencing Commission recorded 12 people sentenced for stalking or harassing offenses in the Southern District of Georgia in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 11 (92%) received a prison term, and the median was 15 months. Across all 94 districts, the median was 24 months.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 12 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.
Most Cases Involved Threatening Communications
"Stalking/Harassing" is the Commission's offense type, grouped by the primary sentencing guideline. In this district, §2A6.1 (Threatening or Harassing Communications) was the primary guideline for 10 of the 12 people.
The other 2 people had §2A6.2 (Stalking or Domestic Violence) as the primary guideline. Stalking cases were less than 1% of the 4,115 people sentenced in the district.
Prison Terms Compared With the National Figure
11 of the 12 people (92%) received a prison term, and 1 (8%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement. Across all districts, 2,263 people were in this offense type, and 89% were sent to prison.
The median prison term in this district was 15 months. A quarter received 34.5 months or more, and a quarter received 14 months or less. The national median was 24 months, and the median for all offenses in this district was 48 months.
The terms are those imposed, not time served.
Within the Guideline Range in 6 of 12 Cases
Sentences within the guideline range were 50% of the cases (6 people). Below the range at the government's request were 25% (3 people), and below the range without a government request were 17% (2 people). One person (8%) was above the range.
For this offense type across all districts, 47% were within the range. For all offenses in this district, the figure was 71%.
All Pleaded Guilty
All 12 people (100%) pleaded guilty, and none was convicted after a trial. Across all districts, 92% pleaded guilty. Every guilty plea (100%) had a written plea agreement.
No mandatory minimum prison term applied to any of the 12 people with that information recorded (0%).
Supervised Release, Fines, and Restitution
Supervised release followed prison for 11 people (92%), with a median term of 36 months.
A fine was ordered for 1 person (8%). Restitution was ordered for 3 (25%).
In criminal history, 58% were in the lowest category I and 8% were in the highest, category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
| 2018 | 1 | 24 months | 1 of 1 |
| 2020 | 1 | 120 months | 1 of 1 |
| 2022 | 5 | 14 months | 5 of 5 |
| 2024 | 1 | 36 months | 1 of 1 |
| 2025 | 3 | 15 months | 3 of 3 |
A Very Small Group
Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 account for 2 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 account for 10. The yearly table lists 6 years, and 5 of them have 1 or 3 people. The largest year is 2022, with 5 people and a median of 14 months.
Medians in the table include 120 months for 2020 and n/a for 2016, each based on 1 person. Counts this small do not show a trend, and a single case can change a percentage by a large amount.
What Cannot Be Told From These Records
Only people who were convicted and sentenced are included. Acquittals and dismissals are not counted, and the records give no details of any case.
Fort Gordon and Fort Stewart are in this district. Courts-martial are not tried in this federal court.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Southern District of Georgia (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Georgia South") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Stalking/Harassing" (12). 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 Southern District of Georgia, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Southern District of Georgia, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Southern District of Georgia, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Other Offense Sentences in the Southern District of Georgia, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Southern District of Georgia, 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.