> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.bodiesburied.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Federal Stalking and Harassment Sentences in the Southern District of Texas, FY2016–2025 - URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-stalking-harassing-sentences-southern-district-of-texas/ - Published: 2026-11-04T10:07:58.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-04T10:07:58.000Z - Description: The Southern District of Texas sentenced 34 people for stalking or harassing offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. The median prison term was 24 months (2 years), the same as the national median. In 50% of cases the sentence was within the guideline range, and 15% were above it. - 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 Southern District of Texas, FY2016–](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-southern-district-of-texas/) › Stalking and Harassment: Southern District of Texas **In brief:** The Southern District of Texas sentenced 34 people for stalking or harassing offenses in fiscal years 2016 to 2025\. The median prison term was 24 months (2 years), the same as the national median. In 50% of cases the sentence was within the guideline range, and 15% were above it. 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 34 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/). ## Sentences Above the Range Were More Frequent Here The guideline range is the range that the Commission's guidelines calculate for each case. Of the 34 people, 17 (50%) were sentenced within it. Above the range were 5 (15%). Below the range at the government's request were 4 (12%), and below it without a request were 8 (24%). In all districts, 47% of sentences in this offense type were within the range. For all offenses in the Southern District of Texas, 58% were. ## Prison Terms and the National Median A total of 30 people (88%) received a prison term, and 4 (12%) received probation only. The median prison term was 24 months. A quarter received 44.5 months or more, and a quarter received 7.2 months or less. The national group had 2,263 people, with 89% sent to prison and the same 24-month median. For all offenses in this district, the median was 13 months. | Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty | | ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- | | 2016 | 2 | 62.4 months | 1 of 2 | | 2017 | 2 | 24 months | 2 of 2 | | 2018 | 3 | 120 months | 2 of 3 | | 2019 | 4 | 26.7 months | 4 of 4 | | 2020 | 2 | 43.5 months | 2 of 2 | | 2021 | 6 | 22.5 months | 6 of 6 | | 2022 | 1 | 0 months | 1 of 1 | | 2023 | 4 | 17.1 months | 4 of 4 | | 2024 | 4 | 0 months | 4 of 4 | | 2025 | 6 | 30 months | 5 of 6 | ## Which Guidelines Covered the Cases Stalking/Harassing is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's offense type. The primary guideline was §2A6.1 (Threatening or Harassing Communications) for 23 people and §2A6.2 (Stalking or Domestic Violence) for 5. These cases were less than 1% of the 71,026 people sentenced in the district in these years. ## Guilty Pleas and the Few Trials Of the 34 people, 31 (91%) pleaded guilty, and 3 were convicted after a trial. The national guilty plea rate was 92%. Among the guilty pleas here, 58% had a written plea agreement and 42% were straight pleas. The median prison term after a guilty plea was 24 months. After a trial, it was 90 months, based on 2 people convicted at trial and sent to prison. With only 2 people, that figure cannot support a comparison. The records count 3 people convicted at trial, with a prison term recorded for 2 of them. ## Supervised Release, Fines, and Minimums Supervised release after prison was ordered for 30 people (88%), with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 2 people (6%), and restitution for 2 (6%). No mandatory minimum prison term applied to any of the 30 people with that information recorded. In criminal history, 32% were in the lowest category and 3% were in the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field. ## Yearly Groups Are Very Small Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 had 11 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 had 23\. Each year had between 1 and 6 people. The yearly medians range from 0 months to 120 months, so they reflect individual cases and not a trend. The records cover only people who were convicted and sentenced. They exclude acquittals, dismissals, and uncharged cases, and they do not describe what any communication or conduct involved. ### How We Counted Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Southern District of Texas (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Texas South") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Stalking/Harassing" (34). 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](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 Southern District of Texas, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-southern-district-of-texas/) (overview) - [Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Southern District of Texas, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-immigration-sentences-southern-district-of-texas/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Southern District of Texas, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-southern-district-of-texas/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Firearms Sentences in the Southern District of Texas, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-southern-district-of-texas/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Southern District of Texas, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-southern-district-of-texas/) (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.