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# 18 U.S.C. 661, Within special maritime and territorial jurisdiction: How Federal Cases Ended, FY2016–2025
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-statute-18-usc-661-case-outcomes/
- Published: 2026-11-03T06:55:33.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-03T06:55:33.000Z
- Description: Just 345 of 645 federal defendants (53%) charged under 18 U.S.C. 661 were convicted in cases that ended in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Nearly as many had their charges dismissed as pleaded guilty: 297 (46%) compared with 336 (52%). Most charges were Class A misdemeanors, and 155 of those convicted (4
- Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart
- Tags: Understanding Trends, Federal

[Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [Federal Prosecution Analysis](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) › 18 U.S.C. 661

**In brief:** Just 345 of 645 federal defendants (53%) charged under 18 U.S.C. 661 were convicted in cases that ended in fiscal years 2016 to 2025\. Nearly as many had their charges dismissed as pleaded guilty: 297 (46%) compared with 336 (52%). Most charges were Class A misdemeanors, and 155 of those convicted (45%) received a prison term on that charge.

Updated November 3, 2026 · Sources: U.S. Sentencing Commission and Federal Judicial Center, fiscal years 2016–2025

This post uses the Federal Judicial Center's records of 645 federal defendants whose cases ended in fiscal years 2016 to 2025\. The series also draws on the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 659,036 people sentenced 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/).

## How Many Were Convicted?

Title 18, section 661 of the U.S. Code has the heading "Within special maritime and territorial jurisdiction". The Federal Judicial Center records 645 defendants whose most serious charge at the end of the case was under this section and whose cases ended in fiscal years 2016 to 2025.

336 defendants (52%) pleaded guilty. 297 (46%) had their charges dismissed. 12 (2%) went to trial. Altogether, 345 of the 645 (53%) were convicted by plea or verdict.

A dismissal in this data covers any case where the charges were dropped. It includes dismissals on the government's motion, and some of those follow a guilty plea in a different case.

## Mostly Misdemeanor Charges

At the end of the case, 470 defendants (73%) faced a Class A misdemeanor under section 661\. 175 (27%) faced a felony. None faced a petty offense.

Among the 345 convicted, 155 (45%) received a prison term on this charge. The median term, counting only terms of 1 month or more, was 8 months. The records do not break the prison figures down by felony or misdemeanor.

## Self-Represented Defendants and Other Counsel Groups

Counsel figures in this section describe groups of cases, not lawyer quality. The type of counsel is noted at the end of the case, and people who retain a lawyer often face different charges and circumstances than people who receive an appointed one.

104 defendants (16%) were self-represented. In this group, 76% had their charges dismissed and 22% pleaded guilty. 2 went to trial, and neither was acquitted.

Federal public or community defenders handled 251 defendants (39%): 74% pleaded guilty and 24% were dismissed. CJA panel attorneys, private lawyers appointed by the court, handled 132 (20%), with 74% pleading guilty and 23% dismissed. Private retained counsel handled 57 (9%), with 51% pleading guilty and 44% dismissed.

The data does not say why dismissal shares differed across these groups. The counsel label cannot be read as the reason.

| Type of counsel at the end of the case | Defendants | Pleaded guilty | Dismissed | Trials | Acquitted at trial |
| -------------------------------------- | ---------- | -------------- | --------- | ------ | ------------------ |
| Federal public or community defender   | 251        | 74%            | 24%       | 4      | 2 (2 of 4)         |
| CJA panel attorney                     | 132        | 74%            | 23%       | 3      | 1 (1 of 3)         |
| Private (retained) counsel             | 57         | 51%            | 44%       | 3      | 0 (0 of 3)         |
| Self-represented                       | 104        | 22%            | 76%       | 2      | 0 (0 of 2)         |

## The 12 Trials

Trials were uncommon. Of the 12 that took place, 3 ended in an acquittal (25%). Juries decided 6 and acquitted 1\. Judges decided the other 6 as bench trials and acquitted 2.

These counts are too small to compare jury and bench trials in any reliable way.

## From Year to Year

The most cases ended in fiscal year 2016, with 127\. The fewest ended in fiscal year 2025, with 33\. Dismissals ranged from 30% to 59% of cases in a single year, and in fiscal year 2019 more cases were dismissed than resolved by a guilty plea.

No year had more than 3 trials, so the yearly table is best used to see case counts and plea and dismissal shares.

| Fiscal year | Cases ended | Pleaded guilty | Dismissed | Trials | Acquitted at trial |
| ----------- | ----------- | -------------- | --------- | ------ | ------------------ |
| 2016        | 127         | 58%            | 42%       | 0      | 0                  |
| 2017        | 84          | 58%            | 39%       | 2      | 1 (1 of 2)         |
| 2018        | 71          | 56%            | 42%       | 1      | 0 (0 of 1)         |
| 2019        | 114         | 39%            | 59%       | 2      | 1 (1 of 2)         |
| 2020        | 48          | 50%            | 50%       | 0      | 0                  |
| 2021        | 40          | 43%            | 55%       | 1      | 0 (0 of 1)         |
| 2022        | 46          | 65%            | 33%       | 1      | 0 (0 of 1)         |
| 2023        | 48          | 42%            | 52%       | 3      | 1 (1 of 3)         |
| 2024        | 34          | 44%            | 53%       | 1      | 0 (0 of 1)         |
| 2025        | 33          | 67%            | 30%       | 1      | 0 (0 of 1)         |

## What Is Not in the Records

The data tracks only the most serious charge at the end of each case. It does not record where the conduct took place, what was alleged, or what the evidence was. It cannot show why prosecutors dismissed so many of these charges, and it cannot show how any one case would have ended with a different type of lawyer.

### How We Counted

Every federal defendant whose case ended in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 and whose most serious charge at the end of the case (TTITLE1) was under 18 U.S.C. 661, any subsection (645), Federal Judicial Center, counted as in the federal courts' Table D-4\. Type of counsel is TCOUNSEL; labels from the FJC criminal codebook. Section heading from the U.S. Code as published by the Office of the Law Revision Counsel (release point 119-136).

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

**Who is in each set of numbers.** The federal sentencing numbers come from the U.S. Sentencing Commission. They count only people who were convicted and sentenced in federal district court. People whose cases were dismissed or who were acquitted are not in them. The military numbers come from court-martial results, which include acquittals. To compare acquittal or dismissal rates, the federal side uses a different source: the Federal Judicial Center's case data, which counts every defendant whose case ended.

**How "plea" and "trial" are counted.** In the federal sentencing numbers, "trial" means the person was convicted after a trial, including people who pleaded guilty to some counts and went to trial on others. People acquitted at trial are not in these numbers at all (see "Who is in each set of numbers"). In the federal case data, the trial rate counts both convictions and acquittals at trial among all defendants whose cases ended, including dismissed cases. Military numbers count contested cases that reached a verdict. These denominators are not the same, and each post states the one it uses.

**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.

**Type of counsel describes groups of cases, not lawyers.** The Federal Judicial Center records the type of counsel at the end of the case. Defendants who hire a lawyer differ from defendants who receive an appointed lawyer in their charges, criminal history, and circumstances, and some defendants change lawyers during a case. Differences in outcomes by type of counsel therefore cannot be credited to the type of lawyer.

## 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)
- [18 U.S.C. 656, Theft, embezzlement, or misapplication by bank officer or employee: How Federal Cases Ended, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-statute-18-usc-656-case-outcomes/) (same title of the U.S. Code)
- [18 U.S.C. 659, Interstate or foreign shipments by carrier; State prosecutions: How Federal Cases Ended, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-statute-18-usc-659-case-outcomes/) (same title of the U.S. Code)
- [18 U.S.C. 666, Theft or bribery concerning programs receiving Federal funds: How Federal Cases Ended, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-statute-18-usc-666-case-outcomes/) (same title of the U.S. Code)
- [18 U.S.C. 669, Theft or embezzlement in connection with health care: How Federal Cases Ended, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-statute-18-usc-669-case-outcomes/) (same title of the U.S. Code)
- [Appointed vs. Retained Lawyers in Federal Criminal Cases: How Cases Ended, 2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-appointed-vs-retained-counsel-outcomes/)
- [Are Courts-Martial More Likely to End in Acquittal Than Federal Trials?](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-trial-acquittal-rates-vs-courts-martial/)
- [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.