26 U.S.C. 5861, Prohibited acts: How Federal Cases Ended, FY2016–2025
Federal trials under 26 U.S.C. 5861 were uncommon, but when they happened, 10 of 37 (27%) ended in an acquittal in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Across all 1,219 defendants, 1,115 (91%) pleaded guilty and 1,142 (94%) were convicted. Of those convicted, 993 (87%) received a prison term on this charge, w
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In brief: Federal trials under 26 U.S.C. 5861 were uncommon, but when they happened, 10 of 37 (27%) ended in an acquittal in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Across all 1,219 defendants, 1,115 (91%) pleaded guilty and 1,142 (94%) were convicted. Of those convicted, 993 (87%) received a prison term on this charge, with a median of 36 months (3 years).
This post uses the Federal Judicial Center's records of 1,219 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 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.
How Many Trials Ended in Acquittal?
Only 37 defendants (3%) took their case to trial. Of them, 10 were acquitted. That is 27% of the trials.
Juries heard 32 of the trials and acquitted in 8 (25%). A judge alone decided 5 bench trials, and 2 of those 5 ended in an acquittal.
An acquittal rate based on 37 trials can move a lot with a handful of verdicts. It describes these trials only. It says nothing about the defendants who pleaded guilty or had their charges dismissed.
Defendants Counted and the Section Heading
Title 26, section 5861 of the U.S. Code carries the heading "Prohibited acts". This post identifies the statute by that heading and nothing more.
The Federal Judicial Center records count 1,219 defendants whose most serious charge at the end of the case fell under this section. Their cases ended in fiscal years 2016 to 2025.
Every defendant is in the count, whether the case ended in a plea, a dismissal, a conviction at trial, or an acquittal. All 1,219 charges were recorded as felonies. None was a Class A misdemeanor or a petty offense.
Pleas, Dismissals, and Prison Terms
A guilty plea ended 1,115 cases (91%). Charges were dismissed for 67 defendants (5%).
In these records, a dismissal can include a case the government asked the court to drop. One example is a defendant who pleaded guilty in a different case. So a dismissal here does not always mean the person had no federal conviction.
Of the 1,142 who were convicted, 993 (87%) were sentenced to prison on this charge. For those with a term of 1 month or more, the median prison term was 36 months (3 years). The median is the middle term when all are put in order. It leaves out time imposed on any other count.
Type of Counsel at the End of the Case
A federal public or community defender represented 586 defendants (48%). A CJA panel attorney, a private lawyer appointed by the court, represented 346 (28%). Retained private counsel represented 275 (23%).
Guilty pleas ended 94% of federal defender cases, 92% of CJA panel cases, and 90% of retained counsel cases. Retained counsel went to trial in 14 cases with 2 acquittals (14%). Federal defenders went to trial in 12 with 5 acquittals (42%), and CJA panel attorneys in 11 with 3 acquittals (27%).
These figures describe groups of cases, not the quality of lawyers. Counsel type is recorded when the case ends. People who hire a lawyer and people who are appointed one often face different charges and circumstances.
| Type of counsel at the end of the case | Defendants | Pleaded guilty | Dismissed | Trials | Acquitted at trial |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Federal public or community defender | 586 | 94% | 4% | 12 | 5 (42%) |
| CJA panel attorney | 346 | 92% | 5% | 11 | 3 (27%) |
| Private (retained) counsel | 275 | 90% | 5% | 14 | 2 (14%) |
Year by Year
Between 96 and 142 cases under this section ended each fiscal year. The guilty plea rate stayed between 90% and 95% in every year.
Trials never exceeded 6 in a single year. Fiscal year 2019 had 5 trials and 3 acquittals. From fiscal year 2020 through 2025, the only acquittals were 1 in 2022 and 1 in 2025. Yearly trial counts this small do not show a trend.
| Fiscal year | Cases ended | Pleaded guilty | Dismissed | Trials | Acquitted at trial |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 112 | 91% | 5% | 4 | 2 (2 of 4) |
| 2017 | 119 | 91% | 7% | 3 | 1 (1 of 3) |
| 2018 | 122 | 92% | 6% | 3 | 2 (2 of 3) |
| 2019 | 131 | 92% | 5% | 5 | 3 (3 of 5) |
| 2020 | 96 | 92% | 7% | 1 | 0 (0 of 1) |
| 2021 | 125 | 92% | 5% | 4 | 0 (0 of 4) |
| 2022 | 127 | 90% | 6% | 5 | 1 (1 of 5) |
| 2023 | 142 | 91% | 5% | 6 | 0 (0 of 6) |
| 2024 | 117 | 95% | 4% | 1 | 0 (0 of 1) |
| 2025 | 128 | 91% | 5% | 5 | 1 (1 of 5) |
What the Records Cannot Show
The approved crosswalk has no close court-martial counterpart for this section, so no military comparison is made. The records do not explain why a jury acquitted, why a charge was dropped, or why a term was longer or shorter. They also cannot show whether the type of counsel changed any result.
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 26 U.S.C. 5861, any subsection (1,219), 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 (the background article)
- Federal Prosecution Analysis (all federal posts)
- How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built (sources and method)
- 26 U.S.C. 5841, Registration of firearms: How Federal Cases Ended, FY2016–2025 (same title of the U.S. Code)
- 26 U.S.C. 7201, Attempt to evade or defeat tax: How Federal Cases Ended, FY2016–2025 (same title of the U.S. Code)
- 26 U.S.C. 7202, Willful failure to collect or pay over tax: How Federal Cases Ended, FY2016–2025 (same title of the U.S. Code)
- Appointed vs. Retained Lawyers in Federal Criminal Cases: How Cases Ended, 2016–2025
- Are Courts-Martial More Likely to End in Acquittal Than Federal Trials?
- 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.