Federal Tax Offense Sentences in the Western District of Texas, FY2016–2025
93 people were sentenced for tax offenses in the Western District of Texas in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 61% received a prison term and 34% received probation only. For 51% (47), the sentence was below the guideline range without a government request.
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In brief: 93 people were sentenced for tax offenses in the Western District of Texas in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 61% received a prison term and 34% received probation only. For 51% (47), the sentence was below the guideline range without a government request.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 93 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.
Sentences Below the Guideline Range Were Common
Of the 93 people, 25 (27%) were sentenced within the guideline range. 17 (18%) were below the range at the government's request, and 47 (51%) were below it without a government request. 4 (4%) were above the range.
In all 94 districts, 24% of tax sentences were within the range. For every offense type in this district, the figure was 77%.
Prison Terms and Probation
57 of the 93 people (61%) received a prison term, and 32 (34%) received probation only. Among those sent to prison, the median prison term was 21 months. A quarter received 30 months or more, and a quarter received 12 months or less.
In all 94 districts, 5,024 people were sentenced for tax offenses. 66% were sent to prison, and the median prison term was 15.1 months. The share sent to prison was lower in this district, and the median was higher.
Pleas and Trials
84 of 93 people (90%) pleaded guilty, and 9 were convicted after a trial. The median prison term after a guilty plea was 18 months. After a trial it was 37 months, based on 8 people sent to prison.
94% of the guilty pleas had a written plea agreement, and 6% were straight pleas with no agreement. A mandatory minimum applied to 2 of the 93 people (2%).
Tax Guidelines
The Commission's offense type is "Tax". The most common primary guideline was §2T1.4 (Aiding, Assisting, Procuring, Counseling, or Advising Tax Fraud), with 45 people. §2T1.1 (Tax Evasion) had 39.
§2T1.6 (Failing to Collect or Truthfully Account for and Pay Over Tax) had 7, and §2T3.1 (Evading Import Duties or Restrictions (Smuggling)) had 2. The Commission's data calls the district "Texas West".
Restitution Was Usually Ordered
Restitution was ordered for 85 of the 93 people (91%), and a fine for 9 (10%). Supervised release was ordered for 58 (62%), with a median term of 36 months.
88% were in the lowest criminal history category, and 0% were in the highest.
Small Yearly Counts
In fiscal years 2016 to 2019, 46 people were sentenced. In fiscal years 2020 to 2025, 47 people were sentenced. The yearly table shows between 3 and 18 people a year, and fiscal year 2021 has no median because of the small count.
Because of these small groups, the yearly medians, which ranged from 18 months to 27 months, are not trends.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 13 | 21 months | 69% |
| 2017 | 8 | 21.5 months | 7 of 8 |
| 2018 | 18 | 24 months | 94% |
| 2019 | 7 | 21 months | 5 of 7 |
| 2020 | 4 | 27 months | 4 of 4 |
| 2021 | 3 | n/a | 3 of 3 |
| 2022 | 9 | 18 months | 8 of 9 |
| 2023 | 18 | 21 months | 100% |
| 2024 | 7 | 18 months | 7 of 7 |
| 2025 | 6 | 21 months | 6 of 6 |
What the Numbers Leave Out
Tax cases were less than 1% of the 76,480 people sentenced in the district. Only convicted and sentenced people are counted, so acquittals and dismissals do not appear. The district's military installations try courts-martial in military courts, and these federal figures do not cover them.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Western District of Texas (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Texas West") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Tax" (93). 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 (the background article)
- Federal Prosecution Analysis (all federal posts)
- How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built (sources and method)
- Federal Sentences in the Western District of Texas, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Western District of Texas, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Western District of Texas, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Western District of Texas, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Western District of Texas, 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.