Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With a Loss of $1,001 to $15,000, Fiscal Year 2017
In fiscal year 2017, 602 people were sentenced for federal theft or fraud with a loss between $1,001 and $15,000, and 297 of them (49%) went to prison. Their median prison term was 8 months. The 15 people convicted at trial had a median of 28 months, compared with 7.7 months after a guilty plea.
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With a Loss of $1,001 to $ › $1,001 to $15,000: FY2017
In brief: In fiscal year 2017, 602 people were sentenced for federal theft or fraud with a loss between $1,001 and $15,000, and 297 of them (49%) went to prison. Their median prison term was 8 months. The 15 people convicted at trial had a median of 28 months, compared with 7.7 months after a guilty plea.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 602 people sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2017. 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.
Trial Sentences Were Longer Than Plea Sentences
Of the 602 cases, 587 (98%) ended in a guilty plea. The other 15 people were convicted after a trial.
All 15 people convicted at trial were sent to prison. Their median prison term was 28 months. People who pleaded guilty and went to prison had a median of 7.7 months.
A group of 15 is small. The figure describes these 15 sentences and does not show why the trial terms were longer. The records do not show whether the trial cases involved different conduct, different criminal history, or other differences.
What Kind of Guilty Pleas?
A written plea agreement was part of 86% of the guilty pleas. In such an agreement, the defendant and the government set terms for the plea.
The remaining 14% were straight pleas. A straight plea is a guilty plea entered with no agreement.
Prison, Probation, and Supervised Release
A prison term was ordered for 297 of the 602 (49%). Probation only, with no prison or other confinement, was ordered for 267 (44%).
The prison terms varied a good deal. A quarter of those sent to prison received 18 months or more, and a quarter received 4 months or less. The median was 8 months.
After prison, 291 people (48%) were ordered to serve supervised release. The median supervised release term was 36 months.
Guideline Range and Mandatory Minimums
All 602 records show how the sentence compared with the guideline range. Within the range: 79% (476). Below the range at the government's request: 7% (40). Below the range without a government request: 11% (66). Above the range: 3% (20).
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 54 people, or 9% of the band. A mandatory minimum is a prison term set by statute that the judge generally cannot go below.
Money Orders and Prior Records
Courts ordered restitution to victims for 496 people (82%). A fine was ordered for 62 (10%).
For criminal history, 62% were in category I, the lowest, and 7% were in category VI, the highest. Court-martial records do not have a criminal history field, so this measure has no military match.
How Fiscal Year 2017 Compares
Across every loss band under guideline §2B1.1 in fiscal year 2017, 6,358 people were sentenced. Their median prison term was 24 months, and 72% went to prison. The $1,001 to $15,000 band had a shorter median and a lower prison rate than that full group.
Over fiscal years 2016 to 2025, this band had 4,270 people, a median prison term of 8 months, and a prison rate of 54%. The fiscal year 2017 median was the same as the all-years median. The year-by-year counts appear in the table.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 702 | 7 months | 99% |
| 2017 | 602 | 8 months | 98% |
| 2018 | 506 | 8.8 months | more than 99% |
| 2019 | 498 | 7.8 months | 98% |
| 2020 | 380 | 6 months | more than 99% |
| 2021 | 342 | 8.6 months | 99% |
| 2022 | 350 | 12 months | 99% |
| 2023 | 354 | 7 months | 97% |
| 2024 | 298 | 6 months | 97% |
| 2025 | 238 | 7.2 months | more than 99% |
Limits of the Comparison
These numbers count only people who were convicted and sentenced. Cases that ended in acquittal or dismissal are not included.
A federal fiscal year starts on October 1 and ends on September 30. Court-martial larceny records seldom list a dollar amount, which is why this band has no court-martial counterpart.
How We Counted
People sentenced in fiscal year 2017 under guideline §2B1.1 whose recorded dollar loss falls in the band "$1,001 to $15,000" (602), 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 $1,001 to $15,000, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With a Loss of $1,001 to $15,000, Fiscal Year 2016 (previous or next year)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With a Loss of $1,001 to $15,000, Fiscal Year 2018 (previous or next year)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With No Dollar Loss, Fiscal Year 2017 (same year, other loss band)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With a Loss of $1,000 or Less, Fiscal Year 2017 (same year, other loss band)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With a Loss of $15,001 to $95,000, Fiscal Year 2017 (same year, other loss band)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With a Loss of $95,001 to $550,000, Fiscal Year 2017 (same year, other loss band)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With a Loss of $550,001 to $3.5 Million, Fiscal Year 2017 (same year, other loss band)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With a Loss Over $3.5 Million, Fiscal Year 2017 (same year, other loss band)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With the Loss Amount Not Specified, Fiscal Year 2017 (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.