Federal Tax Offense Sentences in the Western District of Virginia, FY2016–2025
45 people were sentenced for tax offenses in the Western District of Virginia in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 30 (67%) received a prison term, with a median of 19 months, and 12 (27%) received probation only. In all 94 federal districts together, 66% of people in this offense type were sent to prison.
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the Western District of Virginia, FY201 › Tax Offense: Western District of Virginia
In brief: 45 people were sentenced for tax offenses in the Western District of Virginia in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. 30 (67%) received a prison term, with a median of 19 months, and 12 (27%) received probation only. In all 94 federal districts together, 66% of people in this offense type were sent to prison.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 45 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.
Tax Evasion and Other Primary Guidelines
Tax cases were 2% of the 2,529 people sentenced in the district. The most common primary guideline was §2T1.1 (Tax Evasion), with 28 people.
§2T1.6 (Failing to Collect or Truthfully Account for and Pay Over Tax) applied to 8, §2T1.4 (Aiding, Assisting, Procuring, Counseling, or Advising Tax Fraud) to 4, and §2T1.9 (Conspiracy to Impede, Impair, Obstruct, or Defeat Tax) to 3.
Prison Terms Compared With the All-District Median
Among the 30 people sent to prison, the median prison term was 19 months. A quarter received 32.2 months or more, and a quarter received 12.5 months or less. The all-district median for tax offenses was 15.1 months, so the median here was higher.
The Commission reports the term imposed, not time served.
Guilty Pleas and 6 Trial Convictions
39 of the 45 people (87%) pleaded guilty, and 6 were convicted after a trial. In all districts, 93% pleaded guilty in this offense type, and in this district the figure for all offenses was 96%.
The median prison term was 18 months after a guilty plea and 30 months after a trial. The trial figure rests on 6 people. 92% of the guilty pleas had a written plea agreement, and 8% were straight pleas.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 7 | 16 months | 6 of 7 |
| 2017 | 11 | 18 months | 100% |
| 2018 | 13 | 21 months | 85% |
| 2019 | 3 | 34 months | 3 of 3 |
| 2020 | 2 | 22.5 months | 1 of 2 |
| 2021 | 2 | 36 months | 1 of 2 |
| 2023 | 1 | n/a | 1 of 1 |
| 2024 | 2 | 78 months | 1 of 2 |
| 2025 | 4 | 51 months | 4 of 4 |
Sentences Against the Guideline Range
19 of the 44 sentences with the information recorded (43%) were within the guideline range. 12 (27%) were below it at the government's request, and 13 (30%) were below it without that request. None was above it.
For tax offenses in all districts, 24% were within the range. For all offenses in this district, the figure was 40%.
Money Orders, Supervision, and Criminal History
Restitution was ordered for 31 people (69%), and a fine for 15 (33%). 30 people (67%) were ordered to serve supervised release, with a median term of 24 months.
No mandatory minimum prison term applied to any of the 44 people with that information recorded. 93% were in the lowest criminal history category, category I, and 0% were in the highest, category VI.
Counts by Year
Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 account for 34 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 account for 11. Fiscal year 2018 has the most in the table, 13. Several years have only 1 or 2 people, so their medians, including 78 months in fiscal year 2024, rest on very few cases.
Fiscal year 2025 has 4 people with a median of 51 months, and all 4 pleaded guilty. The records do not show the amount of tax involved, and they leave out anyone acquitted or whose case was dismissed.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Western District of Virginia (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Virginia West") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Tax" (45). 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 Western District of Virginia, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Western District of Virginia, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Western District of Virginia, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Western District of Virginia, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Western District of Virginia, 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.