> ## 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 Tax Offense Sentences in the Central District of California, FY2016–2025 - URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-tax-sentences-central-district-of-california/ - Published: 2026-11-04T10:36:50.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-04T10:36:50.000Z - Description: Of 194 people sentenced for tax offenses in the Central District of California in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 116 (60%) received a prison term and 40 (21%) received probation only. The median prison term was 15 months, about the same as the 15.1 months for all 94 districts. Restitution was ordered fo - 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 Central District of California, FY2](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-central-district-of-california/) › Tax Offense: Central District of California **In brief:** Of 194 people sentenced for tax offenses in the Central District of California in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 116 (60%) received a prison term and 40 (21%) received probation only. The median prison term was 15 months, about the same as the 15.1 months for all 94 districts. Restitution was ordered for 171 people (88%). 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 194 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/). ## Prison, Probation, and the Median Term In the tax offense type, 194 people were sentenced. A prison term went to 116 of them (60%). Another 40 (21%) got probation only, with no prison or other confinement. The median prison term was 15 months. A quarter received 24 months or more, and a quarter received 8 months or less. For all districts, 66% of 5,024 people were sent to prison. For all offenses in this district, the median was 37 months. These are terms imposed, not time served. ## Restitution, Fines, and Supervised Release The court ordered restitution for 171 of the 194 people (88%) and a fine for 40 (21%). For 115 people (59%), supervised release followed prison, and the median term was 24 months. On criminal history, 87% were in the lowest category and less than 1% in the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field. ## Plea and Trial Results Guilty pleas accounted for 183 of 194 cases (94%), and 11 people were convicted after a trial. For all districts, 93% pleaded guilty, and for all offenses in this district the figure was 95%. The median prison term was 12.5 months after a guilty plea and 63 months after a trial. The trial figure is based on 10 people convicted at trial and sent to prison. Among the guilty pleas, 99% had a written plea agreement and 1% were straight pleas. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 2 of the 194 people (1%). ## Position Against the Guideline Range Of the 194 people, 24% (46) were sentenced within the guideline range. Another 38% (74) were below it without a government request, and 36% (69) were below it at the government's request. Above the range were 3% (5). The within-range share was 24% for this offense type in all districts, which is the same as here, and 29% for all offenses in this district. ## Which Guidelines Were Used "Tax" is the Commission's offense category. The most common primary guideline was §2T1.1 (Tax Evasion), with 113 people. Next were §2T1.4 (Aiding, Assisting, Procuring, Counseling, or Advising Tax Fraud) with 58, §2T3.1 (Evading Import Duties or Restrictions (Smuggling)) with 7, and §2T2.1 (Non-Payment of Taxes) with 6. Tax cases were 2% of the 9,958 people sentenced in the district. ## Counts and Medians by Fiscal Year Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 account for 85 of the people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 account for 109\. A fiscal year starts October 1 and ends at the close of September. The table gives 13 to 27 people per year. The yearly median prison term is between 5.5 months and 23.5 months. At these counts a few cases can move a median, so the table is not evidence of a trend. | Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty | | ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- | | 2016 | 27 | 17 months | 100% | | 2017 | 26 | 12 months | 81% | | 2018 | 17 | 21 months | 88% | | 2019 | 15 | 6 months | 100% | | 2020 | 13 | 23.5 months | 85% | | 2021 | 21 | 9 months | 95% | | 2022 | 18 | 5.5 months | 100% | | 2023 | 21 | 18 months | 95% | | 2024 | 18 | 19 months | 100% | | 2025 | 18 | 18 months | 100% | ## What the Records Cannot Show The data covers only people who were convicted and sentenced. It has no acquittals or dismissals, and it does not give the amount of tax at issue in any case. Courts-martial are tried in military courts, not in this federal district court. These numbers describe federal cases only. ### How We Counted Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Central District of California (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "California Central") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Tax" (194). 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](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 Central District of California, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-central-district-of-california/) (overview) - [Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Central District of California, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-central-district-of-california/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Central District of California, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-central-district-of-california/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Central District of California, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-immigration-sentences-central-district-of-california/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Firearms Sentences in the Central District of California, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-central-district-of-california/) (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.