Federal Tax Offense Sentences in the Southern District of Indiana, FY2016–2025
36 people were sentenced for tax offenses in the Southern District of Indiana in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 28 of them were sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 8 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. 24 of the 36 (67%) received a prison term, and the median prison term was 18 months.
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the Southern District of Indiana, FY201 › Tax Offense: Southern District of Indiana
In brief: 36 people were sentenced for tax offenses in the Southern District of Indiana in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 28 of them were sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 8 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. 24 of the 36 (67%) received a prison term, and the median prison term was 18 months.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 36 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 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.
Fewer Tax Cases in Recent Years
In fiscal years 2016 to 2019, 28 people were sentenced for tax offenses in this district. In fiscal years 2020 to 2025, the count was 8. The table shows that fiscal year 2017 had the most cases, with 12 people, and that fiscal years 2020 and 2024 are missing from it.
The records show the change in counts but not the reason for it. They do not show how many tax cases were investigated or charged, only how many people were sentenced.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 8 | 24 months | 7 of 8 |
| 2017 | 12 | 12 months | 100% |
| 2018 | 4 | 13 months | 4 of 4 |
| 2019 | 4 | 27 months | 4 of 4 |
| 2021 | 3 | 19 months | 3 of 3 |
| 2022 | 2 | 9 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2023 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
| 2025 | 2 | 18 months | 2 of 2 |
Prison Terms and Probation
24 of the 36 people (67%) were sent to prison. 6 people (17%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement. For all 94 federal districts, 66% of people sentenced for tax offenses were sent to prison.
The median prison term was 18 months. A quarter received 24 months or more, and a quarter received 12 months or less. The median for all 94 districts was 15.1 months. For all offenses in this district, it was 70 months.
Sentences Below the Guideline Range
58% of the sentences (21 people) were below the advisory guideline range without a government request. 19% (7 people) were below the range at the government's request, and 19% (7 people) were within the range. 1 person (3%) was above the range.
For all 94 districts, 24% of tax sentences were within the range. For all offenses in this district, it was 43%. No mandatory minimum prison term applied to any of the 36 people (0%).
Guidelines and Pleas
Tax is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's offense type. The most common primary guidelines each had 17 people: §2T1.4 (Aiding, Assisting, Procuring, Counseling, or Advising Tax Fraud) and §2T1.1 (Tax Evasion). §2T1.6 (Failing to Collect or Truthfully Account for and Pay Over Tax) had 2 people.
35 of 36 people (97%) pleaded guilty, and 1 person was convicted after a trial. The median prison term was 18 months after a guilty plea and 24 months after the trial, which involved a single person. That single case cannot show a pattern. Among those who pleaded guilty, 97% had a written plea agreement and 3% were straight pleas.
Restitution, Fines, and Supervision
Restitution was ordered for 35 people (97%), and a fine for 3 (8%). 24 people (67%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, with a median term of 12 months.
In criminal history, 83% were in the lowest category, category I, and 0% were in the highest, category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Caseload and Limits of the Records
Tax cases were less than 1% of the 4,205 people sentenced in the district in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Yearly counts range from 1 to 12 people, so the yearly medians are not a trend.
The data counts only people who were convicted and sentenced. Acquittals and dismissals are not in it. Prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Southern District of Indiana (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Indiana South") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Tax" (36). 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 (the background article)
- Federal Prosecution Analysis (all federal posts)
- How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built (sources and method)
- Federal Sentences in the Southern District of Indiana, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Southern District of Indiana, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Southern District of Indiana, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Southern District of Indiana, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Robbery Sentences in the Southern District of Indiana, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- 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.