Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With a Loss of $1,000 or Less, Fiscal Year 2025
Just 50 people were sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2025 for theft or fraud with a loss of $1,000 or less, the fewest of any year from 2016 to 2025. Of the 50, 46 (92%) received a sentence within the guideline range. Probation only went to 36 (72%), and 14 (28%) were sent to prison for a m
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With a Loss of $1,000 or L › $1,000 or less: FY2025
In brief: Just 50 people were sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2025 for theft or fraud with a loss of $1,000 or less, the fewest of any year from 2016 to 2025. Of the 50, 46 (92%) received a sentence within the guideline range. Probation only went to 36 (72%), and 14 (28%) were sent to prison for a median of 5.2 months.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 50 people sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 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.
A Small Group of 50
The yearly table shows 184 people in this band in fiscal year 2016 and 50 in fiscal year 2025. In a group of 50, a change in only a few sentences moves the percentages. The figures for this year are best read as a small count, not as a trend.
The count reflects people convicted and sentenced. It does not show how many theft or fraud cases were investigated, charged, dismissed, or ended in acquittal.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 184 | 6.6 months | more than 99% |
| 2017 | 200 | 5.7 months | 98% |
| 2018 | 161 | 4.5 months | 99% |
| 2019 | 151 | 6 months | 99% |
| 2020 | 108 | 5.6 months | 100% |
| 2021 | 85 | 4.5 months | 99% |
| 2022 | 91 | 1.5 months | 100% |
| 2023 | 102 | 6.5 months | 97% |
| 2024 | 78 | 5.8 months | 99% |
| 2025 | 50 | 5.2 months | 100% |
Most Sentences Were Within the Range
Of the 50 sentences, 46 (92%) were within the guideline range. The other 4 (8%) were below the range without a government request.
No sentence was below the range at the government's request: 0% (0). No sentence was above the range: 0% (0).
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 2 people (4%).
Probation Only for 36 People
Probation only means a sentence with no prison and no other confinement. In fiscal year 2025, 36 of the 50 people received it, or 72%.
The 14 people sent to prison (28%) had a median term of 5.2 months. The shortest quarter of terms were recorded as 0 months, and the longest quarter were 9.1 months or more.
Supervised release after prison was ordered for 12 people (24%), with a median of 24 months.
Guilty Pleas Only
All 50 people pleaded guilty, which is 100%, and 0 were convicted after a trial. Written plea agreements were part of 72% of the pleas, and 24% were straight pleas with no agreement.
Payments and Criminal History
Restitution was ordered for 40 people (80%), and a fine for 11 (22%).
In criminal history, 82% were in category I, the lowest federal category. Another 8% were in category VI, the highest. Court-martial records contain no criminal history field.
Larger Theft and Fraud Totals
Guideline §2B1.1 sets federal theft and fraud sentences, and its loss table defines the band limits in this series. In fiscal year 2025, 4,804 people were sentenced under it across all loss amounts. Of them, 75% were sent to prison, with a median term of 20.5 months.
Within this band over fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 1,210 people were sentenced. The prison share was 33% and the median prison term was 5.8 months. The fiscal year 2025 prison share and median were both lower.
What Cannot Be Compared
The source is U.S. Sentencing Commission data for fiscal year 2025, which began October 1, 2024, and ended September 30, 2025.
There is no court-martial count for this band. Military records rarely list what a stolen item or sum was worth.
How We Counted
People sentenced in fiscal year 2025 under guideline §2B1.1 whose recorded dollar loss falls in the band "$1,000 or less" (50), U.S. Sentencing Commission (LOSSHI).
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
Different cases reach each system. Federal prosecutors bring a narrow set of cases. In fiscal year 2024, immigration and drug trafficking cases were 59% of everyone sentenced in federal court (36,664 of 61,678). Many crimes that the military prosecutes, such as most assaults, most sexual assaults between adults, and drug use, are usually state crimes for civilians and reach federal court only in special situations, such as on federal land or in Indian Country. A federal case and a court-martial for the same crime can involve different kinds of facts.
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.
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 Theft and Fraud Sentences With a Loss of $1,000 or Less, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With a Loss of $1,000 or Less, Fiscal Year 2024 (previous or next year)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With No Dollar Loss, Fiscal Year 2025 (same year, other loss band)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With a Loss of $1,001 to $15,000, Fiscal Year 2025 (same year, other loss band)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With a Loss of $15,001 to $95,000, Fiscal Year 2025 (same year, other loss band)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With a Loss of $95,001 to $550,000, Fiscal Year 2025 (same year, other loss band)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With a Loss of $550,001 to $3.5 Million, Fiscal Year 2025 (same year, other loss band)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With a Loss Over $3.5 Million, Fiscal Year 2025 (same year, other loss band)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With the Loss Amount Not Specified, Fiscal Year 2025 (same year, other loss band)
- Theft and Fraud by Dollar Loss: Federal Sentences vs. Article 121 Courts-Martial
- Army Article 121 Cases by the Numbers, 2021–2025 (court-martial data)
- Air Force Article 121 Cases by the Numbers, 2016–2025 (court-martial data)
- How Has Article 121 Changed in Navy-Marine Corps Courts-Martial Since 2017? (court-martial data)
- Article 121 (Larceny): Court-Martial Data and Trends (court-martial data)
- Article 121 UCMJ: Larceny and Wrongful Appropriation (law firm reference page)
- 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.