Federal Stalking and Harassment Sentences in the Southern District of Iowa, FY2016–2025
17 of the 18 people sentenced for stalking or harassment offenses in the Southern District of Iowa in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 received a prison term (94%). The median prison term was 24 months (2 years), the same as the median for all 94 federal districts. In this district, 50% of sentences were w
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the Southern District of Iowa, FY2016–2 › Stalking and Harassment: Southern District of Iowa
In brief: 17 of the 18 people sentenced for stalking or harassment offenses in the Southern District of Iowa in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 received a prison term (94%). The median prison term was 24 months (2 years), the same as the median for all 94 federal districts. In this district, 50% of sentences were within the guideline range.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 18 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.
Prison Terms for Stalking and Harassment
17 of the 18 people (94%) were sent to prison, and none received probation only. For all 94 districts, 89% of people in this offense type were sent to prison.
Among those sent to prison, the median prison term was 24 months. A quarter received 46 months or more, and a quarter received 18 months or less. For all offenses in the Southern District of Iowa, the median was 80 months. Listed terms are sentences imposed, not time served.
Position Against the Guideline Range
9 people (50%) were sentenced within the advisory guideline range. 5 (28%) were below the range at the government's request, and 3 (17%) were below it without a government request. 1 person (6%) was above the range.
The within-range share was 47% for all 94 districts and 37% for all offenses in this district. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 1 of the 18 people (6%).
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 2 | 18 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2018 | 3 | 12 months | 3 of 3 |
| 2019 | 4 | 18.5 months | 4 of 4 |
| 2021 | 3 | 55 months | 1 of 3 |
| 2023 | 1 | 60 months | 1 of 1 |
| 2024 | 3 | 24 months | 3 of 3 |
| 2025 | 2 | 30.5 months | 2 of 2 |
Which Guidelines Applied?
The Commission's offense type is "Stalking/Harassing." The primary guideline was §2A6.1 (Threatening or Harassing Communications) for 13 people. For 5 people it was §2A6.2 (Stalking or Domestic Violence).
Pleas and the Trial Comparison
16 of 18 people (89%) pleaded guilty, and 2 were convicted after a trial. The plea rate was 92% for all 94 districts and 96% for all offenses in this district.
The median prison term after a guilty plea was 24 months. After a trial, it was 40.5 months, based on 2 people. That is too few people to say how trial sentences compare in general.
Among those who pleaded guilty, 81% had a written plea agreement and 19% were straight pleas with no agreement.
Supervised Release, Restitution, and Fines
17 people (94%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, and the median term was 36 months. Restitution was ordered for 3 people (17%). No fine was ordered for anyone (0%).
Criminal history was mixed. 33% were in the lowest category, category I, and 0% were in the highest, category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Small Counts Over Time
9 people were sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 9 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. The yearly table has counts of 1 to 4 people in each listed year. Medians range from 12 months to 60 months, but a median based on 1 or 2 people does not show a trend.
These cases were less than 1% of the 4,208 people sentenced in this district in fiscal years 2016 to 2025.
What the Records Cannot Show
Only people who were convicted and sentenced appear in this data. Acquittals and dismissals do not. The records also do not describe what happened in any case.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Southern District of Iowa (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Iowa South") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Stalking/Harassing" (18). 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 Iowa, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Southern District of Iowa, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Southern District of Iowa, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Southern District of Iowa, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Child Pornography Sentences in the Southern District of Iowa, 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.