Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With No Dollar Loss, Fiscal Year 2020
Fiscal year 2020 had 404 people sentenced for federal theft or fraud with a loss band of no loss, the most of any year from 2016 to 2025. A prison term went to 300 of them (74%), with a median of 5.2 months. Sentences were within the guideline range for 85% (345).
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With No Dollar Loss, FY201 › no loss: FY2020
In brief: Fiscal year 2020 had 404 people sentenced for federal theft or fraud with a loss band of no loss, the most of any year from 2016 to 2025. A prison term went to 300 of them (74%), with a median of 5.2 months. Sentences were within the guideline range for 85% (345).
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 404 people sentenced in federal court in fiscal year 2020. 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.
The Largest Year for This Band
The yearly table shows 404 people in this band in fiscal year 2020. No other fiscal year from 2016 to 2025 had as many. The next-largest year in the table was fiscal year 2022, with 292.
At the same time, the total for guideline §2B1.1 across every loss band was 4,356 in fiscal year 2020. The no-loss band was a small part of that total. The no-loss median prison term was also much shorter than the full group's.
The records do not show why the count was higher in this year.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 178 | 6 months | 98% |
| 2017 | 201 | 6 months | 96% |
| 2018 | 209 | 6 months | 97% |
| 2019 | 234 | 4.4 months | 97% |
| 2020 | 404 | 5.2 months | 98% |
| 2021 | 240 | 4.5 months | 98% |
| 2022 | 292 | 5.8 months | 99% |
| 2023 | 162 | 6 months | 96% |
| 2024 | 152 | 4.3 months | 95% |
| 2025 | 135 | 4 months | 94% |
Prison Terms and Probation
Of the 404, 300 (74%) received a prison term and 90 (22%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement. Across the band's full span of fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 69% went to prison.
The median prison term in fiscal year 2020 was 5.2 months, the same as the all-years median for this band. A quarter received 6.6 months or more. A quarter received 2.1 months or less.
All §2B1.1 cases that year had a median prison term of 18 months, and 72% were sent to prison.
Within the Guideline Range More Often
All 404 records include the sentence's position against the guideline range. A large share, 85% (345), were within the range. A sentence within the range is one that matches the guideline calculation for that person.
Above the range were 7% (29). Below the range at the government's request were 2% (10). Below the range without a government request were 5% (20).
How the Cases Were Resolved
A guilty plea resolved 394 of the 404 cases (98%). The other 10 people were convicted after a trial.
Straight pleas, with no written agreement, made up 41% of the guilty pleas. Written plea agreements made up 59%.
The median prison term was 5.1 months after a guilty plea and 13.5 months after a trial. Only 6 people convicted at trial were sent to prison, so the trial median comes from a small group.
Other Parts of the Sentence
Supervised release after prison was ordered for 176 people (44%), with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 51 (13%). Restitution was ordered for 1 person, less than 1%.
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 18 people. On criminal history, 86% were in category I, the lowest, and 2% were in category VI, the highest.
What Is Missing From the Count
These are sentencing records, so people who were acquitted or had charges dismissed are not here. The federal year is a fiscal year, October 1 to September 30.
Courts-martial are counted by trial date, and their records rarely state the dollar value of a larceny. A no-loss court-martial group therefore cannot be built from the military records. Court-martial files also have no criminal history field.
How We Counted
People sentenced in fiscal year 2020 under guideline §2B1.1 whose recorded dollar loss falls in the band "no loss" (404), 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 No Dollar Loss, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With No Dollar Loss, Fiscal Year 2019 (previous or next year)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With No Dollar Loss, Fiscal Year 2021 (previous or next year)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With a Loss of $1,000 or Less, Fiscal Year 2020 (same year, other loss band)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With a Loss of $1,001 to $15,000, Fiscal Year 2020 (same year, other loss band)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With a Loss of $15,001 to $95,000, Fiscal Year 2020 (same year, other loss band)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With a Loss of $95,001 to $550,000, Fiscal Year 2020 (same year, other loss band)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With a Loss of $550,001 to $3.5 Million, Fiscal Year 2020 (same year, other loss band)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With a Loss Over $3.5 Million, Fiscal Year 2020 (same year, other loss band)
- Federal Theft and Fraud Sentences With the Loss Amount Not Specified, Fiscal Year 2020 (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.