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# Federal Tax Offense Sentences in the Eastern District of Louisiana, FY2016–2025
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-tax-sentences-eastern-district-of-louisiana/
- Published: 2026-11-04T11:14:29.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-04T11:14:29.000Z
- Description: In the Eastern District of Louisiana, 58 people were sentenced in the "Tax" offense type in fiscal years 2016 to 2024. Of them, 29 (50%) received probation only and 25 (43%) received a prison term, with a median of 24 months. In all 94 federal districts, 66% of people in this offense type were sent
- 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 Eastern District of Louisiana, FY20](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-eastern-district-of-louisiana/) › Tax Offense: Eastern District of Louisiana

**In brief:** In the Eastern District of Louisiana, 58 people were sentenced in the "Tax" offense type in fiscal years 2016 to 2024\. Of them, 29 (50%) received probation only and 25 (43%) received a prison term, with a median of 24 months. In all 94 federal districts, 66% of people in this offense type were sent to prison.

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 58 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/).

## Restitution for Everyone, Prison for 25

Restitution was ordered for all 58 people (100%). A fine was ordered for 9 people (16%).

A prison term went to 25 of the 58 people (43%), and probation only, with no prison or other confinement, went to 29 (50%). Among those sent to prison, the median prison term was 24 months, which is 2 years. A quarter received 30 months or more, and a quarter received 12 months or less.

The median across all 94 districts was 15.1 months, and the median for all offenses in this district was 60 months.

## Tax Guidelines Used

The Commission's "Tax" category is based on the main sentencing guideline. The most common here was §2T1.1 (Tax Evasion), with 31 cases. Next was §2T1.4 (Aiding, Assisting, Procuring, Counseling, or Advising Tax Fraud), with 21 cases.

There were 5 cases under §2T1.6 (Failing to Collect or Truthfully Account for and Pay Over Tax) and 1 under §2T2.1 (Non-Payment of Taxes). Tax cases were 2% of the 2,953 people sentenced in this district in fiscal years 2016 to 2025.

## Sentences Below the Guideline Range

Sentences were below the guideline range without a government request for 45% of the group (26 people) and at the government's request for 33% (19 people). Sentences were within the range for 21% (12 people) and above it for 2% (1 person).

In all 94 districts, 24% of sentences in this offense type were within the range. For all offenses in this district the figure was 56%. A mandatory minimum applied to 2 of the 58 people (3%).

## Guilty Pleas With Written Agreements

A total of 56 of 58 people (97%) pleaded guilty, and 2 were convicted after a trial. Among the guilty pleas, 93% had a written plea agreement and 7% were straight pleas with no agreement.

In all 94 districts, 93% of people in this offense type pleaded guilty. For all offenses in this district the figure was 96%.

## Supervised Release and Criminal History

Supervised release after prison was ordered for 25 people (43%), with a median term of 24 months. In criminal history, 79% were in the lowest category and 3% in the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.

## Counts by Fiscal Year

Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 had 26 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 had 32 people. The data for this offense type runs through fiscal year 2024.

Fiscal year 2023 had the most people, with 14, and yearly counts were as low as 2\. 2 years have no median prison term listed. The table shows small counts, not a trend.

| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
| ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- |
| 2016        | 8                | 19.5 months   | 8 of 8         |
| 2017        | 4                | 30 months     | 4 of 4         |
| 2018        | 11               | 30 months     | 91%            |
| 2019        | 3                | 30 months     | 3 of 3         |
| 2020        | 2                | n/a           | 2 of 2         |
| 2021        | 5                | 15 months     | 5 of 5         |
| 2022        | 8                | 12 months     | 8 of 8         |
| 2023        | 14               | 12 months     | 93%            |
| 2024        | 3                | n/a           | 3 of 3         |

## What the Records Leave Out

The Commission's data includes only people who were convicted and sentenced, so acquittals and dismissals do not appear. Prison terms are those imposed, not time served.

The records do not show the amount of tax involved or the facts of any case. This post reports federal numbers on their own.

### How We Counted

Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Eastern District of Louisiana (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Louisiana East") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Tax" (58). 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 Eastern District of Louisiana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-eastern-district-of-louisiana/) (overview)
- [Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Eastern District of Louisiana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-eastern-district-of-louisiana/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Eastern District of Louisiana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-eastern-district-of-louisiana/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Firearms Sentences in the Eastern District of Louisiana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-eastern-district-of-louisiana/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Eastern District of Louisiana, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-immigration-sentences-eastern-district-of-louisiana/) (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.