Federal Criminal Case Processing, 2002: Bureau of Justice Statistics

U.S.
Department of Justice
Office of Justice Programs
Bureau of Justice Statistics

Federal Justice Statistics: Reconciled Data
Federal Criminal Case

Processing, 2002
With trends 1982-2002
Federal criminal case processing, 1994-2002

140,000
Suspects investigated
120,000 Suspects arrested
100,000
Defendants charged
80,000
Offenders convicted
60,000
Offenders sentenced
to prison
40,000
20,000
0
1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002
U.S. Department of Justice
810 Seventh Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20531
John Ashcroft
Attorney General

Partnerships for Safer Communities
Deborah J. Daniels
Assistant Attorney General
World Wide Web site:

http//www.ojp.usdoj.gov
Lawrence A. Greenfeld
Director
World Wide Web site:

http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs
For information contact

National Criminal Justice Reference Service
1-800-851-3420
Federal Criminal Case

Processing, 2002
With trends 1982-2002
Federal Justice Statistics: Reconciled Data
January 2005, NCJ 207447

Lawrence A. Greenfeld, Director
This Bureau of Justice Statistics Report was prepared by

the Urban Institute under the supervision of Steven K.
Smith and Mark Motivans of the Bureau of Justice Statis-
tics (BJS). This report was prepared under BJS grant
number 2001-BJ-CX-K027. Principal staff at the Urban In-
stitute were Laura Winterfield, William Adams, Avi Bhati,
Kamala Mallik Kane, Barbara Parthasarathy, Juliet Scarpa,
and Yan Yuan. Layout and design were provided by Mick
Schommer. Tom Hester of BJS provided editorial review.
This report is made possible through the cooperation of the
following Federal agencies and their staffs: The United
States Marshals Service (USMS), the Administrative Office
of the United States Courts (AOUSC), the Executive Office
for U.S. Attorneys (EOUSA), and the Federal Bureau of
Prisons (BOP). The staff who provided expert advice
about the source records include: Joe Briggs (USMS);
Steven Schlesinger and Catherine Whitaker (AOUSC);
Siobhan Sperin and Barbara Tone (EOUSA); and Sue Alli-
son and Nancy Miller (BOP).
BJS authorizes any person to reproduce, publish, translate,
or otherwise use all or any part of the material in this publi-
cation; citation to source, however, is appreciated.
An electronic version of this report and the data underlying
graphics may be found on the BJS Internet Home Page
<http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/>. The BJS-sponsored Fed-
eral Justice Statistics Resource Center (FJSRC) Internet
Home Page <http://fjsrc.urban.org> provides online access
to the Federal Justice database. Users may download
data from the Federal Justice database for independent
analysis or use the online query system to quickly obtain
customized statistics.
To order additional copies of this report or CD-ROMs con-
taining the Federal Justice database, call the National
Criminal Justice Reference Service Clearinghouse at
1-800-732-3277.

Partnerships for Safer Communities
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov
ii Federal Criminal Case Processing, 2002

Contents
Highlights, 1
Introduction, 3
Federal criminal case processing,

2002, 5
Tables and figures
Methodology, 17
The Federal justice database
Table construction and interpretation
Offense classifications
Classification level
Estimations
Statistics appearing in Federal Criminal
Case Processing, 2002
Appendix, 25
Tables
Contents iii
Tables
Federal criminal case processing, A.7. Defendants in cases proceeded

2002, 5 against in U.S. district courts, by
offense, 1994-2002
October 1, 2001 - September 30, 2002
1. Suspects arrested for Federal A.8. Defendants in cases terminating in
offenses and booked by USMS, by U.S. district courts, by offense,
offense 1994-2002
2. Suspects in criminal matters investi- A.9. Defendants in cases terminating in

gated by U.S. attorneys, by offense U.S. district courts: Percent con-
victed, by offense, 1994-2002
3. Disposition of suspects in matters
concluded by U.S. attorneys, A.10. Offenders convicted and sentenced
by offense in U.S. district courts, by offense,
1994-2002
4. Defendants in cases proceeded
against in U.S. district courts, A.11. Offenders convicted and sentenced
by offense in U.S. district courts: Number sen-
tenced to prison, by offense,
5. Disposition of defendants in cases 1994-2002
terminated in U.S. district courts,
by offense A.12. Criminal appeals filed, by offense,
1994-2002
6. Sanctions imposed on offenders
convicted and sentenced in U.S. A.13. Offenders convicted and sentenced
district courts, by offense in U.S. district courts: Number sen-
tenced to probation only, by
7. Criminal appeals filed, by type of offense, 1994-2002
criminal case and offense
A.14. Offenders convicted and sentenced
8. Offenders under Federal supervi- in U.S. district courts: Mean num-
sion, by offense ber of months of imprisonment
imposed, by offense, 1994-2002
9. Federal prison admissions and
releases, by offense A.15. Offenders under Federal supervi-
sion, by offense, 1994-2002
Methodology, 17 A.16. Population at the end of the year in
Federal prisons, by offense,
M.1. Breakout of main category offenses
1994-2002
M.2. Source agencies for data tables in
Federal Criminal Case Processing
Appendix, 25
A.1. Suspects arrested for Federal
offenses and booked by USMS,
by offense, 1994-2002
A.2. Suspects in criminal matters investi-
gated by U.S. attorneys, by offense,
1994-2002
A.3. Suspects in criminal matters
concluded by U.S. attorneys, by
offense, 1994-2002
A.4. Suspects in criminal matters con-
cluded by U.S. attorneys: Number
prosecuted before U.S. district court
judge, by offense, 1994-2002
cluded by U.S. magistrates, by
offense, 1994-2002
cluded by U.S. attorneys: Number
declined prosecution, by offense,
1994-2002
iv Federal Criminal Case Processing, 2002

Figures
Highlights, 1
Figure H.1. Federal criminal case proc-
essing, October 1, 2001 -
September 30, 2002
Figure H.2. Number of offenders under
Federal correctional supervi-
sion, September 30, 2002
Federal criminal case processing,

2002, 5
Figure 1. Number of suspects in crimi-
nal matters investigated by
U.S. attorneys, by selected
offenses, 1982-2002
Figure 2. Number of defendants in
criminal cases terminated in
U.S. district court, by se-
lected offenses, 1982-2002
Figure 3. Defendants convicted in U.S.
district court: Percentage
sentenced to prison, by se-
lected offenses, 1982-2002
Figure 4. Number of offenders under
Federal supervision, by type
of supervision, 1987-2002
Figure 5. U.S. district court commit-
ments and first releases from
Federal prison, by expected
or actual time in prison,
1986-2002
Contents v
Highlights
• During 2002, U.S. attorneys initiated investigations

Federal criminal case processing, October 1, 2001 -
involving 124,335 suspects for possible violations of September 30, 2002
Federal law. Almost a third (31%) of those investi-
gated were suspected of a drug violation.
Suspects investigated 124,335
• Between 1994 and 2002, investigations initiated by
U.S. attorneys have increased 25% — from 99,251 to Suspects arrested 124,074
124,335. Investigations for immigration violations in- Defendants prosecuted 87,727

creased from 5,526 to 16,699; for drug offenses, in-
vestigations increased from 29,311 to 38,150. Offenders convicted 71,798
• U.S. attorneys declined to prosecute a smaller pro- Offenders sentenced

53,682
to prison*
portion of those investigated, as declinations of mat-
Criminal appeals filed 11,569
ters concluded decreased from 36% during 1994 to
27% during 2002. 0 25,000 50,000 75,000 100,000 125,000 150,000
• During 2002, 124,074 suspects were arrested by Figure H.1.

Federal law enforcement agencies for possible viola-
tion of Federal law. Just over 27% of all arrests were
for drug offenses, 21% for immigration offenses, 18% Number of offenders under Federal correctional
supervision, September 30, 2002
for supervision violations, 14% for property offenses,
6% for weapon offenses, 4% for violent offenses, and Prison 143,031
3% to secure and safeguard a material witness.
Supervised release
• Between 1994 and 2002, the number of defendants 73,229
charged in criminal cases filed in U.S. district court

Probation 30,577
increased 41%, from 62,327 to 87,727. The number
of defendants charged with an immigration offense Parole 3,561
increased from 2,453 to 13,101, while the number
0 25,000 50,000 75,000 100,000 125,000 150,000
charged with a drug offense increased from 20,275
to 30,673.
Figure H.2.
• During 2002 criminal cases involving 80,424 defen- *Prison includes offenders given life and death sentences, and includes
dants were concluded in U.S. district court. Of these, new law offenders given prison-community split sentences (prison and
89% were convicted. Almost all (96%) of those con- conditions of alternative community confinement). Also included are
victed pleaded guilty or no contest. offenders given mixed sentences of prison plus probation, applicable only
to offenders sentenced pursuant to laws applicable prior to the Sentencing
• Drug prosecutions have comprised an increasing Reform Act of 1984.
proportion of the Federal criminal caseload — from
21% of defendants in cases terminating in U.S. dis-
trict court during 1982 to 36% during 2002. weapon offenses, expected time served increased
• Since implementation of the Sentencing Reform Act from 32.4 months to 64.5 months.
of 1984, the proportion of defendants sentenced to • During 2002 the U.S. Court of Appeals received
prison increased from 54% during 1988 to 75% dur- 11,569 criminal appeals, of which 9,764 were
ing 2002. The proportion of drug offenders sen- guidelines-based appeals. Fifty-eight percent of
tenced to prison increased from 79% to 91%. these appeals challenged both the conviction and the
• Prison sentences imposed increased slightly from sentence imposed.
55.1 months during 1988 to 57.1 months during • During 2002, 107,367 offenders were under Federal
2002. For drug offenses, prison sentences increased community supervision. Supervised release has be-
from 71.3 months to 76.0 months; for weapon of- come the primary form of supervision in the Federal
fenses, sentences imposed increased from 52.3 system: 68% of offenders were on supervised re-
months to 83.8 months. lease compared to 28% on probation, and 3% re-
• Time expected to be served in prison, on average, in- maining on parole.
creased from 26.9 months for offenders admitted • On September 30, 2002, 143,031 offenders were
during 1988 to 46.1 months for offenders admitted serving a prison sentence in Federal prison; 57%
during 2002. For drug offenses, the amount of time were incarcerated for a drug offense; 11% for an im-
an incoming offender could expect to serve in- migration offense; 10% for a violent offense; 10% for
creased from 39.3 months to 62.4 months; for a weapon offense; 7% for a property offense; and 6%
for all other offenses.
Highlights 1
Introduction
Federal Criminal Case Processing, more detail on many of the statistics

2002, fourth in an annual series, pro- presented in this report — including
vides statistics that describe defen- statistics describing 40 offense cate-
dants processed at different stages of gories and statistics on case process-
the Federal criminal justice system for ing matters not covered in this report,
the 12-month period ending Septem- such as pretrial release and demo-
ber 30, 2002. Also included are fig- graphic characteristics of offenders.
ures describing trends in Federal
Several case processing statistics
criminal case processing during the
presented in this report have previ-
1982-2002 period.
ously been reported by the individual
The data presented are compiled agencies. However, because these
from the BJS Federal justice agencies use different criteria to col-
database. The Federal justice data- lect, tabulate, and report on case
base is comprised of data provided by processing events, statistics pub-
the U.S. Marshals Service, the Drug lished by each of the agencies may
Enforcement Administration, the Ex- not be directly comparable. In this re-
ecutive Office for the U.S. Attorneys, port, BJS has attempted to reconcile
the Administrative Office of the U.S. differences in data collection and re-
Courts, the U.S. Sentencing Commis- porting to present comparable statis-
sion, and the Federal Bureau of Pris- tics across stages of the Federal
ons (BOP). The Administrative Office criminal justice system. For a de-
of the U.S. Courts provides data description of the reconciliation effort
scribing the Federal court docket — and the methodology employed, see
criminal and appellate — as well as Comparing Case Processing Statis-
pretrial services, probation, parole, tics (NCJ 169274) and Reconciling
and supervised release. Federal Criminal Case Processing
Statistics (NCJ 171680).
The Federal justice database may be
obtained electronically from the Fed- Since many terms and concepts used
eral Justice Statistics Resource Cen- in this report have specialized mean-
ter website at http://fjsrc.urban.org ings — either because they refer to
or on CD-ROM from the National specific provisions of Federal law or
Criminal Justice Reference Service they refer to procedures used by
Clearinghouse. For more detailed in- agencies supplying the data — read-
formation on obtaining the Federal ers are encouraged to reference the
justice database, see page ii. glossary of the Compendium of Fed-
eral Justice Statistics for definitions of
Statistics presented in this report in-
concepts.
clude the number of suspects ar-
rested by Federal law enforcement
agencies for violations of Federal law, Modifications to Federal Criminal
Case Processing, 2002
the number of suspects investigated
by U.S. attorneys for violations of Fed- Although not shown separately in the
eral law, the outcome of U.S. attorney tables, the FY 2002 data marked the
investigations (prosecution or declina- introduction of two new detailed of-
tion), the number of defendants fense categories, “wildlife offenses”
prosecuted in U.S. district courts, the and “environmental offenses.” Ac-
outcome of criminal cases (convicted cording to the reporting practices of
or not convicted), sanctions imposed this report, these two detailed of-
on defendants convicted (type of sen- fenses are grouped under the major
tence imposed and length of imprison- offense category, “Public-order of-
ment), the number and type of crimi- fenses, Other” in the tables.
nal appeals filed, and the number of
offenders under Federal correctional
supervision — prison, probation, pa-
role, and supervised release. A re-
lated publication, the Compendium of
Federal Justice Statistics, provides
Introduction 3
Federal criminal case processing, 2002
Tables
October 1, 2001 – September 30, 2002
1. Suspects arrested for Federal offenses
and booked by USMS, by offense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
2. Suspects in criminal matters investigated
by U.S. attorneys, by offense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
3. Disposition of suspects in matters concluded
by U.S. attorneys, by offense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
4. Defendants in cases proceeded against
in U.S. district courts, by offense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
5. Disposition of defendants in cases
terminated in U.S. district courts, by offense . . . . . . . . . . . 11
6. Sanctions imposed on offenders convicted
and sentenced in U.S. district courts,
by offense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
7. Criminal appeals filed, by type of criminal
case and offense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
8. Offenders under Federal supervision,
by offense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
9. Federal prison admissions and releases,
by offense . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Figures
1. Number of suspects in criminal matters
investigated by U.S. attorneys, by category
of offense, 1982-2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
2. Number of defendants in criminal cases
terminated in U.S. district court, by category
of offense, 1982-2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
3. Defendants convicted in U.S. district court:
Percentage sentenced to prison, by category
of offense, 1982-2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
4. Number of offenders under Federal super-
vision, by type of supervision, 1987-2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
5. U.S. district court commitments and first releases
from Federal prison, by expected or actual time in
prison, 1986-2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Federal criminal case processing, 2002 5

6 Federal Criminal Case Processing, 2002
Table 1. Suspects arrested for Federal offenses and booked
by the U.S. Marshals Service, by offense, October 1, 2001 -
September 30, 2002
Most serious offense Number Percent
All offensesa 124,074 100%
Violent offensesb 4,723 3.8
Property offenses 17,268 14.1
Fraudulentb 13,976 11.4
Otherb 3,292 2.7
Drug offenses 33,730 27.4
Public-order offenses 8,772 7.1
Regulatory 524 0.4
Other 8,248 6.7
Weapon offenses 7,488 6.1
Immigration offenses 25,270 20.6
Supervision violations 21,777 17.7
Material witness 3,918 3.2
Unknown or indeterminable offense 1,128 0.9
a
Includes suspects whose offense category could b
In this table, "Violent offenses" may include
not be determined. See Methodology for a list- nonnegligent manslaughter; "Fraudulent prop-
ing of detailed offense categories within each erty" excludes tax fraud; and "Other non-
major offense category. fraudulent property" excludes fraudulent prop-
erty and includes destruction of property and
trespassing.

Table 2. Suspects in criminal matters investigated by U.S. attorneys,
by offense, October 1, 2001 - September 30, 2002
Suspects in criminal matters
received by U.S. attorneys
Most serious offense investigateda Number Percent
All offensesb 124,335 100%
Violent offensesc 6,392 5.2
Fraudulentc 24,019 19.5
Otherc 3,302 2.7
Regulatory 4,738 3.8
Other 18,734 15.2
Unknown or indeterminable offenses 1,101 0.9
a c
Based on the decision of the assistant U.S. at- In this table, "Violent offenses" may include
torney responsible for the matter. nonnegligent manslaughter; "Fraudulent prop-
b erty" excludes tax fraud; and "Other non-
Includes suspects whose offense category
could not be determined. See Methodology for a fraudulent property" excludes fraudulent prop-
listing of detailed offense categories within each erty and includes destruction of property and
major offense category. trespassing.
Number of suspects in criminal matters investigated by U.S. attorneys,

by selected offenses, 1982-2002
Number of suspects
140,000
120,000 All offenses
100,000
80,000
60,000
50,000
40,000
Drug
Property
30,000
Property
20,000
Drug Immigration*
10,000 Weapon*
Violent Violent
0
1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001
Note: Data for 1982 through 1993 are estimated from calendar year data; see Methodology. Beginning in
1994, data are reported on the Federal fiscal year running from October 1 through September 30.
*Figure 1 displays data for “Weapon” and “Immigration” offenses beginning in 1994. Public-order offenses are
not shown.
Figure 1.

Table 3. Disposition of suspects in matters concluded by U.S. attorneys, by offense, October 1, 2001 -
September 30, 2002
Suspects in criminal matters concluded
Total Prosecuted before Concluded
number of U.S. district court judgeb by U.S. magistratec Declined prosecutiond
Most serious offense investigateda suspects Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent
All offensese 124,081 76,314 61.5% 14,093 11.4% 33,674 27.1%
Violent offensesf 6,330 3,402 53.7 351 5.5 2,577 40.7
Property offenses 29,083 15,634 53.8 1,771 6.1 11,678 40.2
Fraudulentf 25,543 13,919 54.5 1,194 4.7 10,430 40.8
Otherf 3,540 1,715 48.4 577 16.3 1,248 35.3
Drug offenses 38,424 29,411 76.5 1,937 5.0 7,076 18.4
Public-order offenses 23,139 6,816 29.5 7,624 32.9 8,699 37.6
Regulatory 4,947 1,240 25.1 618 12.5 3,089 62.4
Other 18,192 5,576 30.7 7,006 38.5 5,610 30.8
Weapon offenses 10,126 7,105 70.2 173 1.7 2,848 28.1
Immigration offenses 16,197 13,693 84.5 1,959 12.1 545 3.4
Unknown or indeterminable offenses 782 253 32.4 278 35.5 251 32.1
a e
Based on the decision of the assistant U.S. attorney responsible for the Includes suspects whose offense category could not be determined. See
matter. Methodology for a listing of detailed offense categories within each major of-
b
Includes suspects whose cases were filed in U.S. district court before a fense category.
f
district court judge. In this table, "Violent offenses" may include nonnegligent manslaughter;
c
Includes defendants in misdemeanor cases that were terminated in U.S. "Fraudulent property" excludes tax fraud; and "Other nonfraudulent property" ex-
district court before a U.S. magistrate. cludes fraudulent property and includes destruction of property and trespassing.
d
Includes suspects whose matters were declined for prosecution by U.S.
attorneys upon review.

Table 4. Defendants in cases proceeded against in U.S. district courts,
by offense, October 1, 2001 - September 30, 2002
Defendants in cases commenced
Most serious offense chargeda Number Percent
All offensesb 87,727 100%
Felonies 76,163 86.8
Violent offensesc 3,308 3.8
Fraudulentc 13,511 15.4
Otherc 2,615 3.0
Trafficking 28,406 32.4
Possession and other 2,267 2.6
Regulatory 1,021 1.2
Other 3,830 4.4
Misdemeanorsc 11,493 13.1

Unknown or indeterminable offenses 71 0.1
a c
Based on the offense carrying the most severe statu- In this table, "Violent offenses" may include
tory maximum penalty. nonnegligent manslaughter; "Fraudulent
b
Includes defendants for whom an offense category property" excludes tax fraud; "Other non-
could not be determined. See Methodology for a fraudulent property" excludes fraudulent
listing of detailed offense categories within each property and includes destruction of property
major offense category. and trespassing; and "Misdemeanors" in-
clude misdemeanors, petty offenses, and un-
known offense levels.

Table 5. Disposition of defendants in cases terminated in U.S. district courts, by offense, October 1, 2001 -
September 30, 2002
Defendants in cases terminated in U.S. district courts
Number of Percent Number convicted Number not convicted
Most serious offense chargeda defendants convicted Total Pleab Trialc Total Dismissedd Acquitted
c
All offensese 80,424 89.3% 71,798 69,072 2,726 8,626 7,852 774
Felonies 70,225 91.9 64,540 62,113 2,427 5,685 5,146 539
f 2,927 92.1 2,696 2,522 174 231 197 34
Violent offenses
Property offenses 14,767 90.8 13,405 12,903 502 1,362 1,235 127
Fraudulentf 12,324 90.9 11,205 10,781 424 1,119 1,018 101
Otherf 2,443 90.1 2,200 2,122 78 243 217 26
Drug offenses 29,300 92.4 27,065 26,086 979 2,235 2,050 185
Trafficking 27,254 92.4 25,174 24,252 922 2,080 1,909 171
Possession and other 2,046 92.4 1,891 1,834 57 155 141 14
Public-order offenses 4,645 87.7 4,073 3,845 228 572 507 65
Regulatory 1,129 87.3 986 935 51 143 120 23
Other 3,516 87.8 3,087 2,910 177 429 387 42
Weapon offenses 6,556 89.0 5,833 5,406 427 723 611 112
Immigration offenses 12,030 95.3 11,468 11,351 117 562 546 16
f 10,131 71.0 7,196 6,900 296 2,935 2,701 234
Misdemeanors
Unknown or indeterminable offenses 68 91.2 62 59 3 6 5 1
a e
Based on the offense carrying the most severe statutory maximum penalty. Includes defendants for whom an offense category could not be deter-
b
Includes nolo contendere. mined. See Methodology for a listing of detailed offense categories within
c each major offense category.
Includes bench and jury trials. f
d In this table, "Violent offenses" may include nonnegligent manslaughter;
Includes defendants in cases dismissed for lack of evidence or lack of Federal "Fraudulent property" excludes tax fraud; "Other nonfraudulent property"
interest. excludes fraudulent property and includes destruction of property and
trespassing; and "Misdemeanors" include misdemeanors, petty offenses,
and unknown offense levels.
Number of defendants in criminal cases terminated in U.S. district court,

Number of defendants
90,000
80,000 All offenses
70,000
60,000
50,000
40,000
35,000
30,000 Drug
25,000
Property
20,000
Property
15,000
Immigration*
10,000 Drug
Weapon*
5,000 Violent Violent
0
1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001
Note: Data for 1982 through 1993 are based on a 12-month calendar year reporting period ending December 31.
Beginning in 1994, data are reported on the Federal fiscal year running from October 1 through September 30.
Figure 2 displays data by major offense category, but does not show the felony/misdemeanor distinction. There-
fore, the 2002 data points will not match the data displayed in table 5, nor will the data points on the trend lines
match data displayed in Appendix table A.8.
*Figure 2 displays data for weapon and immigration offenses beginning in 1994.
Figure 2.

Table 6. Sanctions imposed on offenders convicted and sentenced in U.S. district courts, by offense,
October 1, 2001 - September 30, 2002
Offenders convicted and sentenced
Number Months of imprison-
Imprison- Mixed ment imposedf
Most serious offense of convictiona Total mentb sentencec Probationd Fine only Othere Mean Median
All offensesg 71,798 53,266 416 11,774 2,897 3,232 57.1 mo 33 mo
Felonies 63,238 51,886 360 7,818 257 2,719 58.4 36
h 2,578 2,394 14 118 4 43 88.6 60
Violent offenses
Property offenses 13,101 7,674 72 4,349 111 812 25.1 15
Fraudulenth 11,107 6,593 61 3,542 99 737 23.5 15
Otherh 1,994 1,081 11 807 12 75 34.8 18
Drug offenses 26,234 23,789 162 1,345 35 863 76.0 57
Trafficking 24,174 21,955 152 1,175 31 822 75.7 57
Possession and other 2,060 1,834 10 170 4 41 79.6 60
Public-order offenses 4,630 3,034 19 1,343 62 152 38.4 24
Regulatory 1,403 639 2 630 41 82 25.9 18
Other 3,227 2,395 17 713 21 70 41.8 27
Weapon offenses 5,563 5,073 61 340 11 70 83.8 51
Immigration offenses 11,132 9,922 32 323 34 779 27.9 24
h 8,499 1,353 55 3,925 2,638 513 9.6 4
Misdemeanors
Unknown or indeterminable offenses 61 27 1 31 2 0 52.3 37
a f
Based on the disposition offense with the most severe sentence. Calculations exclude offenders given life or death sentences, and old law of-
b
Includes offenders given life and death sentences, and includes new law fenders given mixed sentences of prison plus probation. For new law offenders
offenders given prison-community split sentences (prison and conditions given prison-community split sentences, only the prison portion of the sentence
of alternative community confinement). is included in calculations.
c g
Includes offenders given mixed sentences of prison plus probation; appli- Includes offenders for whom offense categories could not be determined or
cable only to offenders sentenced pursuant to laws applicable prior to the for whom a sentence was unknown. See Methodology for a listing of detailed
Sentencing Reform Act of 1984. offense categories within each major offense category.
d h
Includes offenders given probation plus conditions of confinement, such In this table, "Violent offenses" may include nonnegligent manslaughter;
as home confinement or intermittent confinement. "Fraudulent property" excludes tax fraud; "Other nonfraudulent property" ex-
e cludes fraudulent property and includes destruction of property and trespass-
Includes offenders who had no sentence imposed, those with sealed ing; and "Misdemeanors" include misdemeanors, petty offenses, and unknown
sentences, and those who were deported. offense levels.
Defendants convicted in U.S. district court: Percentage sentenced to prison,

Percent of offenders
100% Weapon*
Weapon* Drug
90% Immigration*
Violent
Violent
80% Immigration*
Drug
All offenses
70%
60%
All offenses
Property
50%
Property
40%
0%
3 0 %
1983 1985 1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001
Note: Data for 1982 through 1993 are based on a 12-month calendar year reporting period ending December 31.
Beginning in 1994, data are reported on the Federal fiscal year running from October 1 through September 30.
Figure 3 displays data by major offense category, but does not show the felony/misdemeanor distinction. Since
table 6 and Appendix tables A.10 and A.11 show felonies and misdemeanors separately, the percentages displayed
in figure 3 cannot be calculated from numbers appearing in the tables.
*Figure 3 displays data for weapon and immigration offenses beginning in 1994.
Figure 3.

Table 7. Criminal appeals filed, by type of criminal case and offense, October 1, 2001 - September 30, 2002
Number of criminal appeals filed
Guidelines-based appeals
Sentence Conviction Sentence and
Most serious offense of convictiona Total Preguideline Total only only conviction Other
All offensesb 11,569 1,805 9,764 3,032 1,014 5,693 25
Violent offensesc 606 108 498 158 49 289 2
Property offenses 1,726 283 1,443 454 191 793 5
Fraudulentc 1,389 217 1,172 370 156 642 4
Otherc 337 66 271 84 35 151 1
Drug offenses 4,689 600 4,089 1,333 407 2,343 6
Public-order offenses 876 145 731 199 90 440 2
Regulatory 128 27 101 30 12 59 0
Other 642 94 548 140 71 335 2
Weapon offenses 1,386 185 1,201 314 152 731 4
Immigration offenses 1,679 148 1,531 475 87 969 0
Unknown or indeterminable offenses 607 336 271 99 38 128 6
a c
Based on the disposition offense with the most severe sentence. In this table, "Violent offenses" may include nonnegligent manslaughter;
b
Includes offenders for whom offense category could not be determined. "Fraudulent property" excludes tax fraud; and "Other nonfraudulent prop-
See Methodology for a listing of detailed offense categories within each erty" excludes fraudulent property and includes destruction of property
major offense category. and trespassing.

Table 8. Offenders under Federal supervision, by offense, October 1, 2001 - September 30, 2002
Offenders under active supervisiona

Post-incarceration supervision
Total Probation Parole Supervised release
Most serious offense of convictionb Number Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent
All offensesc 107,367 30,577 100% 3,561 100% 73,229 100%
Feloniesd 97,518 21,290 69.9 3,555 99.9 72,673 99.3

e 6,281 527 1.7 1,236 34.7 4,518 6.2
Violent offenses
Property offenses 29,268 11,506 37.8 300 8.4 17,462 23.9
Fraudulente 24,439 9,310 30.6 146 4.1 14,983 20.5
Othere 4,829 2,196 7.2 154 4.3 2,479 3.4
Drug offenses 44,980 3,850 12.6 1,594 44.8 39,536 54.0
Trafficking 40,414 3,487 11.5 1,436 40.4 35,491 48.5
Possession and other 4,566 363 1.2 158 4.4 4,045 5.5
Public-order offenses 9,039 3,657 12.0 263 7.4 5,119 7.0
Regulatory 2,570 1,426 4.7 29 0.8 1,115 1.5
Other 6,469 2,231 7.3 234 6.6 4,004 5.5
Weapon offenses 5,662 889 2.9 155 4.4 4,618 6.3
Immigration offenses 2,095 727 2.4 4 0.1 1,364 1.9
e 30.5 0.2 0.8
Misdemeanors 9,849 9,287 6 556
a c
Includes offenders under active supervision at the close of the fiscal year. Includes offenders for whom offense category could not be de-
This population includes offenders under the three major forms of supervi- termined. See Methodology for a listing of detailed offense cate-
sion: probation, supervised release, and parole. Included under parole are gories within each major offense category.
two less common types of old law release: mandatory release and special d
Includes 193 total offenders, 134 offenders under probation, 3 under
parole. Excluded from the number of offenders under active supervision re- parole, and 56 under supervised release whose felony offense cate-
ported in the table are offenders released to military parole and offenders gory could not be determined.
under community supervision prior to sentencing (such as during pretrial re- e
lease or pretrial investigation). In this table, "Violent offenses" may include nonnegligent manslaugh-
b ter; "Fraudulent property" excludes tax fraud; "Other nonfraudulent
Based on the offense with the longest sentence imposed. property" excludes fraudulent property and includes destruction of
property and trespassing; and "Misdemeanors" include
misdemeanors, petty offenses, and unknown offense levels.
Number of offenders under Federal supervision, by type of supervision,

1987-2002
Number of offenders
120,000
100,000
80,000
Supervised release
Parole
60,000
40,000
Probation
20,000
0
1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001
Note: Data for 1987 through 1994 are based on a count of the supervised population as of June 30. Beginning in
1995, data are based on a count as of September 30.
Figure 4.

Table 9. Federal prison admissions and releases, by offense, October 1, 2001 - September 30, 2002
Most serious original offense of Population at Prisoners admitted Prisoners released Population at
convictiona start of year District courtb All otherc District courtd All othere end of year Net change
All offensesf 135,986 50,440 17,437 44,339 16,493 143,031 7,045
Violent offensesg 13,319 2,219 2,638 2,010 2,617 13,549 230
Property offenses 10,072 6,984 4,080 7,019 4,017 10,100 28
Fraudulentg 7,654 5,854 2,699 5,794 2,615 7,798 144
Otherg 2,418 1,130 1,381 1,225 1,402 2,302 -116
Drug offenses 76,941 22,681 5,800 18,917 5,453 81,052 4,111
Trafficking 76,416 22,484 5,470 18,723 5,051 80,596 4,180
Possession and other 525 197 330 194 402 456 -69
Public-order offenses 7,744 3,540 1,719 3,368 1,684 7,951 207
Regulatory 1,145 750 297 684 291 1,217 72
Other 6,599 2,790 1,422 2,684 1,393 6,734 135
Weapon offenses 12,077 4,181 1,359 2,651 1,241 13,725 1,648
Immigration offenses 14,859 10,299 1,407 9,864 1,130 15,571 712
Unknown or indeterminable offenses 974 536 434 510 351 1,083 109
Note: The universe for this table includes sentenced offenders in BOP custody and offend- e
Includes prisoners released from commitments other than a
ers in contract and private facilities, but not those committed for violations of the District of first release from a U.S. district court commitment.
Columbia criminal code unless they were committed by a Federal district court judge. See f
Includes prisoners for whom an offense category could not be
Methodology for more information. determined. See Methodology for a listing of detailed offense
a
Based on the offense having the longest sentence. categories within each major offense category.
b g
Offenders committed from U.S. district courts. This number will not equal the number of In this table, "Violent offenses" may include nonnegligent man-
defendants sentenced to prison reported in table 6, due to the delay between the time an slaughter; "Fraudulent property" excludes tax fraud; and "Other
offender is sentenced in court and when that offender actually reports to a BOP facility. nonfraudulent property" excludes fraudulent property and in-
c cludes destruction of property and trespassing.
Includes other commitments, such as offenders committed from other courts and violators
of conditions of supervised release.
d
Includes prisoners released for the first time from a U.S. district court commitment.
U.S. district court commitments and first releases from Federal prison,
by expected or actual time in prison, 1986-2002
Number of months
60
50
Expected time to be served
for offenders committed
to prison
40
30
20 Average time served by offenders

released from prison
10
0
1987 1989 1991 1993 1995 1997 1999 2001
Note: Beginning in 2000, average time served is calculated for offenders in BOP custody and offenders in
contract and private facilities, but not those committed for violations of the District of Columbia criminal code.
Figure 5.

Methodology
The Federal justice database defendants, Class A misdemeanant according to fiscal year include some
defendants, and those defendants pertinent records in later years' files.
Source of data charged with petty offenses and han- For example, tabulations of suspects
The source of data for all tables in dled by a U.S. district court judge. in matters concluded during fiscal
Federal Criminal Case Processing is year 2002 have been assembled from
The universe of incarcerated offend-
the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS) source files containing records of
ers includes all sentenced offenders
Federal justice database. The data- 2002 matters concluded which were
under the jurisdiction of the Federal
base is presently constructed from entered into the data system during
Bureau of Prisons regardless of the
source files provided by the U.S. Mar- fiscal years 2001 or 2002.
source of their commitment (e.g., U.S.
shals Service (USMS), the Drug En-
district court, State court, or military In the figures showing trends in Fed-
forcement Administration (DEA), the
court, or return from a violation of con- eral criminal case processing, infor-
Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys
ditions of supervision) or length of mation is presented for a period be-
(EOUSA), the Administrative Office of
sentence. This may include some of- tween 1982 and 2002. Data from the
the U.S. Courts (AOUSC), the United
fenders who were convicted of immi- EOUSA are estimated from 1982
States Sentencing Commission
gration offenses who were committed through 1993, as data prior to 1993 in-
(USSC), and the Federal Bureau of
for petty offenses. It does not include cluded appeals information not in-
Prisons (BOP). AOUSC also main-
those offenders who were convicted cluded in the subsequent years. Be-
tains the data collected by the U.S.
of violations of the District of Colum- cause of changes in the reporting and
Court of Appeals and the Federal Pro-
bia criminal code unless they were collection of data over time, data col-
bation and Supervision Information
committed by a Federal district court lected prior to 1994 from AOUSC and
System (FPSIS). Federal law prohib-
judge. EOUSA were reported on a calendar-
its the use of these files for any pur-
year basis; data collected from 1994-
pose other than research or statistics. The universe of supervised offenders
2002 are on a fiscal-year basis. The
A description of the source agency includes persons entering and exiting
figures are marked and noted accord-
data files is provided in table M.2 at terms of Federal supervision, and per-
ing to the period of measurement. In
the end of this section. sons under Federal supervision dur-
figure 4, data collected from FPSIS
ing the fiscal year. Supervision types
reflect the supervised population as of
Data universe include probation, parole, and super-
June 30 for the period of 1987-1994,
The universe of the BJS Federal jus- vised release. Included amongst pa-
and the population as of September
tice database includes criminal sus- role supervisees are those under two
30 for the period of 1995-2002. In fig-
pects investigated for violations of less common types of "old law" super-
ure 5, data collected from BOP, pre-
Federal criminal law, criminal sus- vision (sentenced prior to the imple-
sented from 1985-2002, are reported
pects arrested for violations of Fed- mentation of the Sentencing Reform
on a fiscal-year basis.
eral criminal law, defendants in cases Act of 1984): mandatory release and
filed in U.S. district courts, and offend- special release. Excluded from the
supervised population counts are of- Table construction and
ers entering Federal corrections and interpretation
correctional supervision. fenders supervised under military laws
(military parole) and convicted organi- Universe in each table
The universe of criminal suspects ar- zations under supervision.
rested is all suspects arrested by the The universe in table 1 is suspects ar-
Federal law enforcement agencies The universe of suspects, defendants, rested for violations of Federal crimi-
(including the USMS), state agencies, and offenders varies from table to ta- nal law and transferred to the custody
and self-reported arrests and trans- ble in this report, depending on the of the U.S. Marshals Service.
ferred to the custody of the U.S. Mar- definition of the statistic reported and
The universe in tables 2 and 3, and
shals Service for processing, trans- the source of the data.
figure 1 is suspects in criminal mat-
portation, and detention. ters investigated by U.S. attorneys. A
Reporting period person appearing in multiple matters
The universe of criminal suspects is Wherever possible, matters or cases
limited to those whose matters were will be counted separately for each
have been selected according to matter. Matters include criminal pro-
investigated by U.S. attorneys and in some event which occurred during fis-
which the investigation took at least ceedings handled exclusively by U.S.
cal year 2002 (October 1, 2001, attorneys, or in which U.S. attorneys
one hour of a U.S. attorney’s time. through September 30, 2002). Some provided assistance and spent at
The universe of defendants in Federal data files provided by source agencies least one hour of time.
criminal courts is limited to those de- are organized according to a calendar
fendants whose cases were filed in a year time frame; these have been The universe in tables 4, 5, and 6, as
U.S. district court, whether before a combined and divided into fiscal years well as figures 2 and 3, is defendants
U.S. district court judge or a U.S. for purposes of this report. Files or- adjudicated and sentenced in U.S.
magistrate. This includes all felony ganized by their source agencies district court. Included are defendants
Methodology 17
charged with felonies, Class A and B case. For example, if a single person form the BJS categories shown in this
misdemeanors, and petty offenses if is involved in three different criminal report’s tables.*
the petty offenses are handled by U.S. cases during the time period specified
For data from USMS (table 1) offense
district court judges. Defendants who in the table, he or she is counted three
categories are based on the FBI’s Na-
appear in more than one case are times in the tabulation. Similarly, if a
tional Crime Information Center
counted separately for each distinct single criminal case involves a corpo-
(NCIC) offense classifications, which
case in which they appear. Defen- rate defendant and four individual de-
are converted into U.S. Marshals’ four
dants may have been charged under fendants, it counts five times in the
digit offense codes. These offense
"old law" (pre-Sentencing Reform Act) tabulation.
codes are then aggregated into the of-
or "new law" (post-Sentencing Reform
In tables 8 and 9, the unit of analysis fense categories shown in table 1.
Act) standards.
for incarceration, probation, parole, or
For data from EOUSA (tables 2 and 3,
The universe in table 7 is criminal ap- other supervised release is a person
figure 1), which include U.S. Code ci-
peals filed in the U.S. Court of Ap- entering custody or supervision, or a
tations but do not include the AOUSC
peals. Appeals filed include both person leaving custody or supervision.
offense classifications, U.S. Code ti-
Preguidelines- and Guidelines-based For example, a person convicted in
tles and sections are translated into
appeals. The Sentencing Reform Act two concurrent cases and committed
the AOUSC classification system and
allowed for the appeal of sentences once to the custody of the BOP in the
then aggregated into the offense cate-
imposed, where previously only the indicated time period is counted as
gories used in the tables. Offense
conviction could be appealed. one admission to a term of incarcera-
categories for prisoners in table 9 are
tion. A person who leaves a BOP fa-
The universe in table 8 and figure 4 is based on combinations of offense
cility, reenters, and leaves again in the
offenders entering, exiting, or under designations used by BOP. They are
same fiscal-year period would be
active supervision. Active supervision similar to the categories in other ta-
counted as one admission and two re-
includes supervisees who report regu- bles but may not be directly
leases. A person who terminates pro-
larly to their supervising officers. Ex- comparable.
bation twice in the indicated time pe-
cluded are offenders released to mili-
riod, such as with a violation and
tary parole and offenders who are un- Felony/misdemeanor distinctions
again after reinstatement, is counted
der community release prior to Felony and misdemeanor distinctions
as two terminations of probation.
sentencing. are provided where possible. Felony
The universe in table 9 and figure 5 is Interpretation offenses are those with a maximum
sentenced Federal offenders commit- penalty of more than 1 year in prison.
The data presented in this report are
ted into Federal prison facilities — re- Misdemeanor offenses are those with
a statistical presentation of offenders
gardless of the court from which they a maximum penalty of 1 year or less.
processed in the Federal criminal jus-
were committed and regardless of the Felonies and misdemeanors are fur-
tice system. The tables presented de-
length of sentence. Federal prison fa- ther classified using the maximum
scribe the number of offenders proc-
cilities include BOP facilities, as well term of imprisonment authorized.
essed and the outcome of that proc-
as private and contract facilities. The Section 3559, U.S. Code, Title 18
essing at each stage of the Federal
universe includes primarily offenders classifies offenses according to the
criminal justice system. Because
committed from U.S. district courts by following schedule:
many tables represent different cross-
U.S. district court judges, but also in- sections of offenders, comparisons
cludes those committed by U.S. mag- across tables are not necessarily Felonies
istrates, military courts, and some valid. Class A felony — life imprisonment,
State courts. In addition, it includes or if the maximum penalty is death.
offenders who violated conditions of Offense classifications Class B felony — 25 years or more.
supervised release and who were re-
turned to prison for their violations Procedure Class C felony — less than 25 years
rather than from a court commitment. The offense classification procedure but more than 10 years.
It does not include offenders commit- used in this report is based on the
ted for violations of the District of Co- Class D felony — less than 10 years
classification system followed by the but more than 5 years.
lumbia criminal code unless they were AOUSC. Specific offenses in the
committed by a Federal district court AOUSC classification are combined to Class E felony — less than 5 years
judge. but more than 1 year.
Unit of analysis *These categories correspond to the BJS Misdemeanors

The unit of analysis in tables 1 crime definitions and, to the extent possi-
ble, are organized and presented consis- Class A misdemeanor — 1 year or
through 7 is a combination of a per- tent with BJS publications on State crimi- less but more than 1 month.
son (or corporation) and a matter or nal justice systems.

Class B misdemeanor — 6 months categories. Felonies are then broken includes destruction of property and
or less but more than 30 days. out by six main level offense classifi- trespass.
cations: violent, property, drug,
Class C misdemeanor — 30 days or "Tax law violations" includes tax
public-order, weapon, and immigra-
less but more than 5 days. tion offenses. Property and public- fraud.
Infraction — 5 days or less, or if no order offenses are broken out into two "Obscene material" denotes the mail
imprisonment is authorized. sublevels. The main-level and sub- or transport thereof.
group categories are composed of in-
In this report, felony and misde- dividual offense types. Where the "All other felonies" includes felonies
meanor distinctions are provided data source allows, drug offenses are with unclassifiable offense type.
where the data permit these distinc- broken out into the individual offense "Misdemeanors" includes misde-
tions. Tables 1, 2, and 3 do not use level. “Other public-order offenses”
this distinction because many sus- meanors, petty offenses, and un-
include a limited breakout at the indi- known offense levels.
pects cannot be so classified at the in- vidual offense type level. Table M.1
vestigation stage in the criminal jus- shows a list of specific offenses under "Drug possession" also includes
tice process. Table 7 does not use each offense category. other drug misdemeanors.
this distinction because the Court of
Appeals data do not allow for such a Offense categories Most serious offense selection
breakout. Table 9 does not use this Where more than one offense is
For offenses referred to in table M.1,
distinction because BOP offense cate- charged or adjudicated, the most seri-
the following conditions apply:
gories do not allow for such a break- ous offense (the one that may or did
out. None of the figures showing "Murder" includes nonnegligent result in the most severe sentence) is
trend data report this distribution. manslaughter. used to classify offenses. The of-
Figures 2 and 3 display data by major "Sexual abuse" includes only violent fense description may change as the
offense category but do not show the sex offenses. Beginning in 1999, non- criminal justice process proceeds.
felony/misdemeanor distinction. violent sex offenses, such as prostitu- Tables indicate whether investigated,
Therefore, the data points for major tion, were included in a separate cate- charged, or adjudicated offenses are
offense categories represented on the gory, “Nonviolent sex offenses.” used.
trend lines will not match the data in Therefore, the 2002 tables are not di- In tables 2 and 3, the most serious of-
Appendix tables A.7, A.9, and A.10, rectly comparable with the appendix fense is based on the criminal lead
respectively, nor will the 2002 data tables in this report, or with older edi- charge as determined by the assistant
points match the data for major of- tions of this report. U.S. attorney responsible for the
fense categories in tables 5 and 6. criminal proceeding.
"Fraud" excludes tax fraud.
Classification level "Larceny" excludes transportation of In tables 4 and 5, the most serious of-
stolen property. fense charged is the one that has the
Offenses in the tables in this report most severe potential sentence.
are classified, at the most general "Other property felonies" excludes
level, into felony and misdemeanor fraudulent property offenses, and
Table M.1. Breakout of main category offenses

Felonies
Violent Property offenses Drug Public-order offenses Weapon Immigration
offenses Fraudulent Other offenses Regulatory Other offenses offenses Misdemeanors
Murder Embezzlement Burglary Trafficking Agriculture Tax law violations Larceny
Negligent Fraud Larceny Possession Antitrust Bribery Drug possession
manslaughter Forgery Motor vehicle Other drug Food and drug Perjury, contempt, Immigration
Assault Counterfeiting theft offenses Transportation and intimidation Traffic offense
Robbery Arson and Civil rights National defense Other
Sexual abuse explosives Communications Racketeering/ misdemeanors
Kidnaping Transportation extortion Fraudulent
Custom laws
of stolen Gambling property
Threats Postal laws
property
against the Other regulatory Nonviolent sex
President Other property offenses
offenses offenses
Obscene material
Wildlife offenses
Environmental
All other felonies
Methodology 19
For table 6, conviction offenses are defendants plus appellants in the Sentencing Reform Act (a "new
based on the disposition offenses EOUSA data was equal to the ob- law" prisoner).
having the most severe penalty. served ratio of appellants to appel-
For prisoners in category (a) actual
lants plus defendants in the AOUSC
In table 7, an offense is classified into time served is recorded. For those
data, or:
the category that represents the un- prisoners in category (b), an estimate
derlying offense of conviction, based AAO AEO of time to be served is used, based on
on the disposition offense with the = the mean time served by similar pris-
most severe sentence. (AAO+DAO) (AEO+DEO) oners in previous entering years
where: (1985-98). For prisoners in category
In table 8, the most serious offense of
AAO = number of AO appellants (c) sentenced to more than 1 year,
conviction is either the one having the
time to be served is 87% of the sen-
longest sentence imposed, or, if equal DAO = number of AO defendants
tence imposed, which is the minimum
sentences were imposed or there was AEO = number of EO appellants sentence to be served under the Sen-
no imprisonment, it was the offense DEO = number of EO defendants tencing Reform Act. For prisoners in
carrying the highest severity code as
category (c) sentenced to 1 year or
determined by AOUSC’s offense se- Solving for AEO yields:
less, time to be served is equal to the
verity code ranking.
AAO sentence imposed.
In table 9, prisoners are classified ac- AEO = x (AEO+DEO)
(AAO+DAO)
cording to the offense which bears the Statistics appearing in Federal
longest single incarceration sentence. Criminal Case Processing, 2002
Solving for AEO yields the estimator
above. This estimator was used to The statistics appearing in this report
Estimations produce estimates each year between are as follows:
Several methods were used to esti- 1982 and 1993 using data from these
mate the trend data in this report. years. The estimated number of ap- Table 1. Suspects arrested
pellants in suspects in criminal mat- This is the number of suspects ar-
Estimated number of suspects ters was subtracted from the reported rested by Federal law enforcement
in criminal matters number to derive the estimated num- agencies for violations of Federal law
Because of a change in the reporting ber of suspects in criminal matters. and transferred to the custody of the
protocol for information received from These were used in figure 1. These U.S. Marshals Service for booking
the EOUSA effective with fiscal year estimates were done at the level of of- and pretrial detention. Not included
1994 data, it was necessary to esti- fense category (violent, property, are suspects arrested by Federal
mate certain statistics for years 1982- drugs, and public-order). agencies and transferred directly to
1993. Prior to 1994, reports of the the custody of a State prosecutor.
number of suspects in criminal mat- Estimated expected time to be
ters included appellants in Federal served for offenders entering Table 2. Suspects in matters
criminal appeals. Because full-source prison investigated by U.S. attorneys
agency data prior to 1994 could not The methodology for estimating ex- This is the number of suspects in
be accessed, an estimation procedure pected time to be served to first re- criminal matters whom U.S. attorneys
was used to estimate the number of lease for prisoners entering the BOP spent at least one hour investigating.
appellants within main offense cate- system from a district court commit- It excludes suspects whose matters
gories and then subtract them from ment involves grouping prisoners by were immediately declined or whose
the number of suspects in criminal their fiscal year of entry. Once this matters were received via transfer
matters which included appellants. grouping has occurred, each prisoner from another district. An immediate
The procedure is described in the fol- is classified into one of the following declination is one in which a U.S. at-
lowing paragraphs. categories: torney declines to prosecute a crimi-
a) a prisoner who has been released nal matter without investigating the
The objective was to estimate the
in 2002; matter. Suspects may include per-
number of appellants included in re-
sons, corporations, or other legal enti-
ports of the number of suspects in b) a prisoner still incarcerated at the ties. Matters are limited to criminal
criminal matters. This is denoted be- end of 2002 who was sentenced matters investigated by U.S. attorneys
low as AEO. prior to the passage of the Sen- or matters in which U.S. attorneys as-
Using existing data on appellants de- tencing Reform Act of 1984 (an "old sisted in the investigation. Suspects
rived from alternative sources, such law" prisoner); appearing in more than one matter
as AOUSC reports, an estimator was c) a prisoner still incarcerated at the are counted separately for each
developed based on the assumption end of 2002 who was sentenced af- matter.
that the ratio of appellants to ter to the passage of the

Table 3. Suspects in matters Table 5. Defendants in cases appearing in more than one case are
concluded by U.S. attorneys terminated counted separately in each case.
This is the number of suspects in This is the number of defendants
The sanctions shown in table 5 in-
criminal matters concluded by U.S. at- whose cases were terminated in U.S.
clude imprisonment only, mixed sen-
torneys, regardless of the year in district court. A case is terminated if a
tences of prison plus supervision, pro-
which the criminal matter was defendant is found not guilty, the
bation, and fine only. Imprisonment is
opened. A matter is defined as con- charges are dismissed, or when a de-
limited to defendants receiving terms
cluded when a U.S. attorney files a fendant is sentenced, if he or she was
of imprisonment but no probation, in-
case in a U.S. district court before a convicted. Included in the count are
cluding life and death sentences, but
U.S. district court judge, when a U.S. defendants in cases handled by U.S.
excluding suspended sentences or
attorney declines to prosecute the district court judges plus Class A mis-
sentences to fewer than 4 days. New
matter, or when a misdemeanor case demeanors, whether handled by a
law offenders receiving prison-
is concluded before a U.S. magistrate. U.S. district court judge or a U.S.
community split sentences (prison
The table excludes suspects whose magistrate. Also included are defen-
and conditions of alternative commu-
matter was declined immediately or dants in cases involving petty of-
nity confinement) are also included.
whose matter was concluded by fenses (Class B or C misdemeanors)
Mixed sentences include defendants
transfer. Suspects in matters con- if they were handled by U.S. district
given sentences of both prison and
cluded may include persons, corpora- court judges. These cases included
probation (applies to offenders sen-
tions, or other legal entities and are all cases commenced regardless of
tenced under "old law" standards
limited to the suspects investigated or the source of prosecution — U.S. at-
only). Probation includes defendants
prosecuted by U.S. attorneys, or in torneys or Department of Justice. Ex-
given sentences of probation. Defen-
which U.S. attorneys assisted in the cluded from this count are defendants
dants who received probation plus
investigation or prosecution. Suspects whose cases were opened by transfer
conditions of confinement such as in-
appearing in more than one matter from another district (e.g., a Rule 20
termittent confinement, home deten-
are counted separately for each or Rule 40 transfer). Defendants ap-
tion, or community confinement are
matter. pearing in more than one case are
classified under probation. Fine only
counted separately in each case.
includes defendants who received
Table 4. Defendants in cases
commenced Defendants are classified as con- only a fine. Other sentences include
victed if they pleaded guilty, nolo con- sealed sentences, prison sentences
This is the number of defendants in of 4 days or less, deportations, and
tendere, or if they are found guilty at
cases proceeded in U.S. district court, cases in which the defendant was
trial. Defendants convicted by trial in-
either before a U.S. district court convicted but not given a sentence.
cluded those found guilty by reason of
judge or a U.S. magistrate. Proceed- The statistics on mean and median
insanity. Defendants not convicted in-
ings are initiated on or after the date a prison sentences are based on the
cludes defendants whose cases were
case is filed in a U.S. district court. number given prison exclusive of life
dismissed and those who were acquit-
Included in the count are defendants and death sentences. For offenders
ted or found not guilty at trial.
in cases handled by U.S. district court given prison-community split sen-
judges plus Class A misdemeanors, tences, only the prison sentence
Table 6. Defendants sentenced
whether handled by a U.S. district length is included in the calculation.
court judge or a U.S. magistrate. Also This is the number of defendants sen-
included are defendants in cases in- tenced in U.S. district court. Included
are defendants sentenced in cases Table 7. Criminal appeals filed
volving petty offenses (Class B or C
misdemeanors) if they were handled handled by U.S. district court judges This table reports the number of crimi-
by U.S. district court judges. These plus Class A misdemeanors, whether nal appeals filed in the U.S. Court of
cases included all cases commenced handled by a U.S. district court judge Appeals. Prior to implementation of
regardless of the source of prosecu- or a U.S. magistrate. Also included the Sentencing Reform Act of 1984,
tion — U.S. attorneys or Department are defendants sentenced for petty of- only criminal convictions could be ap-
of Justice. Excluded from this count fenses (Class B or C misdemeanors) pealed. However, the Sentencing Re-
are defendants whose cases were if they were handled by U.S. district form Act provided for the appellate re-
opened by transfer from another dis- court judges. These cases included view of sentences imposed given that
trict (e.g., a Rule 20 or Rule 40 trans- all cases commenced regardless of the sentence was (1) imposed in vio-
fer). Defendants appearing in more the source of prosecution — U.S. at- lation of the law; (2) imposed as the
than one case are counted separately torneys or Department of Justice. Ex- result of an incorrect sentencing
in each case. cluded from this count are defendants guideline application; (3) outside the
whose cases were opened by transfer recommended guideline sentencing
from another district (e.g., a Rule 20 range; or (4) imposed for an offense
or Rule 40 transfer). Defendants for which no sentencing guideline ex-
ists and is plainly unreasonable. Both
Methodology 21
the defendant and the Government other courts and offenders returning
have the right to appeal an imposed to prison for violations of conditions of
sentence (18 U.S.C. § 3742). supervised release. A first release is
defined as a release from a district
Table 8. Offenders under court commitment. Other releases in-
Federal supervision clude releases of offenders who were
This table reports the number of of- serving terms for violating conditions
fenders under active supervision at of supervised release — offenders
the close of the fiscal year. It includes who were committed on other than a
offenders under three forms of super- district court commitment.
vision: probation, supervised release,
and parole. Included in parole super-
visees are those under two less com-
mon types of "old law" (sentenced
prior to the implementation of the
Sentencing Reform Act of 1984),
mandatory release and special re-
lease. The unit of analysis is a unique
person released on supervision.
Table 9. Prisoners
This table reports the number of sen-
tenced Federal offenders committed
into the custody of the BOP, released
from this custody, or in Federal
prison. "Into the custody of" includes
prisoners in BOP facilities, contract fa-
cilities, and private facilities. Contract
facilities generally house offenders
prior to release from prison. Sen-
tenced offenders include felony, mis-
demeanor, and petty offenders sen-
tenced to prison for Federal offenses-
regardless of the judge — U.S. district
court judge or U.S. magistrate — who
sentenced the offender. Table 9 does
not include those offenders who were
convicted of violations of the District
of Columbia criminal code unless they
were committed by a Federal district
court judge. The unit of analysis is a
unique person in Federal prison. The
unit of count for prisoner movements
is based on admissions and releases
into and from Federal prison. A
unique person may appear more than
once in a column showing admissions
and releases if that person was admit-
ted or released from Federal prison
more than once during the reporting
period.
Included in the counts of district court
commitments are offenders sen-
tenced from district courts. This in-
cludes some offenders sentenced by
U.S. magistrates. Other admissions
include offenders committed from

Table M.2. Source agencies for data tables in Federal Criminal Case Processing
Data source agency — data files Description of data files contents Tables
United States Marshals Service (USMS) Contains information about the arrests made by Federal law enforce- Table 1
— Prisoner Tracking System ment agencies (including the USMS), State agencies, and self-reported
arrests. The Prisoner Tracking System contains information on offend- Appendix table A.1
ers transferred to the custody of the U.S. Marshals Service for process-
ing, transportation, and detention.
Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys Contains information on the investigation and prosecution of suspects Tables 2, 3
(EOUSA) — Central System and in criminal matters received and concluded, criminal cases filed and
Central Charge Files terminated, and criminal appeals filed and handled by U.S. attorneys. Appendix tables A.2, A.3,
The central system files contain defendant-level records about the A.4, A.5, A.6
processing of matters and cases; the central charge files contain the
records of the charges filed and disposed in criminal cases. Data are
available on matters and cases filed, pending, and terminated.
Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts Contains information about the criminal proceedings against defen- Tables 4, 5, 6
(AOUSC) — Criminal Termination Files dants whose cases were filed in U.S. district courts. Includes informa- Appendix tables A.7, A.8,
tion on felony defendants, Class A misdemeanants — whether handled
by U.S. district court judges or U.S. magistrates — and other misde- A.9, A.10, A.11, A.13, A.14
meanants provided they were handled by U.S. district court judges.
The information in the data files cover criminal proceedings from case
filing through disposition and sentencing. Data are available on crimi-
nal defendants in cases filed, pending, and terminated.
AOUSC: Court of Appeals Contains information on criminal appeals filed and terminated in U.S Table 7
courts of appeals. Records of appeals filed, pending, or terminated in-
clude information on the nature of the criminal appeal, the underlying Appendix table A.12
offense, and the disposition of the appeal.
AOUSC — Federal Probation Contains information about supervisions provided by probation officers Table 8
Supervision Information System for persons placed on probation or supervised release from prison.
(FPSIS) The files contain records of individuals entering, or currently on supervi- Appendix table A.15
sion, as well as records of offenders terminating supervision.
Bureau of Prisons (BOP): Extract from The data extracts contain information on all offenders committed to or Table 9
BOP’s online Sentry System released from prison over a specific period of time plus information
about the offenders in prison when the data extracts are made. The in- Appendix table A.16
formation covers the time that offenders enter prison until their release
from the jurisdiction of the BOP.
Methodology 23
Appendix
Tables
A.1. Arrests for Federal offenses, by offense,
1994-2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
A.2. Suspects in criminal matters investigated
by U.S. attorneys, by offense, 1994-2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
A.3. Suspects in criminal matters concluded
by U.S. attorneys, by offense, 1994-2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
by U.S. attorneys: Number prosecuted
before U.S. district court judge, by offense,
1994-2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
by U.S. magistrates, by offense, 1994-2002 . . . . . . . . . . . 29
by U.S. attorneys: Number declined
prosecution, by offense, 1994-2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
A.7. Defendants in cases proceeded against
in U.S. district courts, by offense,
1994-2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
A.8. Defendants in cases terminating in
U.S. district courts, by offense, 1994-2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
A.9. Defendants in cases terminating in
U.S. district courts: Percent convicted,
by offense, 1994-2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
A.10. Offenders convicted and sentenced in
U.S. district courts, by offense, 1994-2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
U.S. district courts: Number sentenced
to prison, by offense, 1994-2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
A.12. Criminal appeals filed, by offense, 1994-2002 . . . . . . . . . 32
U.S. district courts: Number sentenced
to probation only, by offense, 1994-2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
U.S. district courts: Mean number of months
of imprisonment imposed, by offense,
1994-2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
A.15. Offenders under Federal supervision,
by offense, 1994-2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
A.16. Population at the end of the year in
Federal prisons, by offense, 1994-2002 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34
Appendix 25
Table A.1. Suspects arrested for Federal offenses and booked by USMS, by offense, 1994-2002
Most serious offense 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999a 2000a 2001a 2002a
b 81,742 84,336 85,718 91,747 104,636 109,857 115,589 118,896 124,074
All offenses
Violent offensesc 3,918 3,845 4,462 4,736 4,934 4,276 4,250 4,843 4,723
Property offenses 15,731 16,436 16,365 16,288 16,966 16,749 16,842 16,824 17,268
Fraudulentc 12,074 12,959 12,870 12,912 13,363 13,260 13,432 13,397 13,976
Otherc 3,657 3,477 3,495 3,376 3,603 3,489 3,410 3,427 3,292
Drug offenses 23,674 24,174 24,821 26,843 30,137 31,992 32,630 33,589 33,730
Public-order offenses 11,690 10,430 9,696 9,324 9,355 9,962 10,063 9,156 8,772
Regulatory 535 702 656 749 775 752 621 687 524
Other 11,155 9,728 9,040 8,575 8,580 9,210 9,442 8,469 8,248
Weapon offenses 3,917 3,756 3,148 3,235 3,555 4,284 5,203 6,007 7,488
Immigration offenses 8,778 10,601 12,027 14,994 20,944 22,851 25,205 24,794 25,270
Supervision violations 12,940 13,719 13,364 13,995 15,206 15,652 17,133 18,978 21,777
Material witness 886 1,143 1,617 2,169 3,398 4,016 4,203 3,679 3,918
Unknown or indetermin-
able offenses 208 232 218 163 141 75 60 1,026 1,128
a c
Starting in 1999, nonviolent sex offenses were reclassified from In this table, “Violent offenses” may include nonnegligent manslaughter;
“Violent offenses” to “Public-order offenses.” “Fraudulent property” excludes tax fraud; and “Other nonfraudulent property”
b excludes fraudulent property and includes destruction of property and trespassing.
Includes suspects whose offense category could not be determined.
See Methodology for a listing of detailed offense categories within each
major offense category.
Table A.2. Suspects in criminal matters investigated by U.S. attorneys, by offense, 1994-2002
Most serious offense
investigated 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999a 2000a 2001a 2002a
b
All offenses 99,251 102,220 97,776 110,034 115,692 117,994 123,559 121,818 124,335
Fraudulentc 28,491 27,836 25,245 25,854 26,328 24,200 24,679 25,275 24,019
Otherc 4,088 3,923 3,717 4,062 3,797 3,811 3,744 3,333 3,302
Drug offenses 29,311 31,686 30,227 34,027 36,355 37,313 38,959 37,944 38,150
Regulatory 5,059 5,371 5,154 5,423 6,541 6,332 5,737 5,411 4,738
Other 14,084 13,665 13,764 17,434 14,703 16,484 18,443 18,569 18,734
Weapon offenses 5,996 5,376 4,462 4,870 4,907 6,982 8,589 8,989 11,200
able offenses 1,126 1,387 1,515 1,644 1,420 1,565 877 694 1,101
Note: Most serious offense investigated is based on the decision of c
In this table, “Violent offenses” may include nonnegligent manslaughter; “Fraudulent
the assistant U.S. attorney responsible for the matter. property” excludes tax fraud; and “Other nonfraudulent property” excludes fraudulent
a property and includes destruction of property and trespassing.
Starting in 1999, nonviolent sex offenses were reclassified from
“Violent offenses” to “Public-order offenses.”
b
See Methodology for a listing of detailed offense categories within
each major offense category.
Appendix 27
Table A.3. Suspects in criminal matters concluded by U.S. attorneys, by offense, 1994-2002
b 94,980 102,309 98,454 99,459 106,022 113,933 117,450 118,978 124,081
All offenses
Fraudulentc 28,038 29,861 27,294 25,157 23,712 24,575 24,186 24,786 25,543
Otherc 3,714 4,027 3,744 3,476 3,749 3,739 3,527 3,334 3,540
Drug offenses 27,697 31,261 30,708 32,072 33,991 36,765 37,009 37,543 38,424
Regulatory 4,990 5,264 4,843 4,582 5,427 5,698 5,840 5,484 4,947
Other 13,323 13,205 13,117 12,880 13,232 15,208 16,535 17,300 18,192
Weapon offenses 5,992 5,732 4,673 4,646 4,742 5,919 7,753 8,715 10,126
able offenses 588 900 1,039 1,302 1,055 1,197 849 621 782
Note: Most serious offense investigated is based on the decision of c
the assistant U.S. attorney responsible for the matter. property” excludes tax fraud; and “Other nonfraudulent property” excludes fraudulent
a property and includes destruction of property and trespassing.
b
See Methodology for a listing of detailed offense categories within
each major offense category.
Table A.4. Suspects in criminal matters concluded by U.S. attorneys: Number prosecuted before U.S. district
court judge, by offense, 1994-2002
b 50,802 55,703 56,938 60,383 64,993 68,384 73,090 72,648 76,314
All offenses
Fraudulentc 12,683 13,858 13,337 12,663 12,408 12,319 12,988 13,044 13,919
Otherc 1,997 2,060 1,933 1,881 1,945 1,713 1,687 1,689 1,715
Drug offenses 19,427 21,445 21,548 24,400 26,266 28,372 28,917 29,583 29,411
Regulatory 1,297 1,509 1,396 1,332 1,571 1,648 1,862 1,557 1,240
Other 5,288 5,237 5,813 4,977 4,359 4,828 5,539 4,945 5,576
Weapon offenses 3,821 3,758 2,935 3,192 3,347 4,149 5,026 5,599 7,105
able offenses 244 308 362 542 298 234 254 250 253
Note: Most serious offense investigated is based on the decision of See Methodology for a listing of detailed offense categories within each major offense
the assistant U.S. attorney responsible for the matter. Number of category.
suspects includes suspects whose cases were filed in U.S. district c
court before a district court judge. property” excludes tax fraud; and “Other nonfraudulent property” excludes fraudulent
a
Starting in 1999, nonviolent sex offenses were reclassified from property and includes destruction of property and trespassing.
b

Table A.5. Suspects in criminal matters concluded by U.S. magistrates, by offense, 1994-2002
investigated
1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999a 2000a 2001a 2002a
b 9,754 10,710 8,684 10,007 12,243 14,545 13,916 14,080 14,093
All offenses
Violent offensesc 264 295 295 352 305 308 329 306 351
Fraudulentc 1,536 1,743 1,511 1,635 1,651 1,678 1,368 1,185 1,194
Otherc 245 300 260 284 520 643 610 482 577
Drug offenses 1,821 2,456 2,262 1,903 1,561 2,132 1,966 1,736 1,937
Regulatory 198 224 275 266 386 445 637 560 618
Other 3,234 3,290 2,941 3,901 4,819 5,629 6,278 7,093 7,006
Weapon offenses 189 190 137 153 116 110 161 178 173
Immigration offenses 2,217 1,989 775 1,229 2,374 2,935 2,199 2,339 1,959
able offenses 50 223 228 284 511 665 368 201 278
Note: Most serious offense investigated is based on the decision of the See Methodology for a listing of detailed offense categories within each major
assistant U.S. attorney responsible for the matter. Number of suspects offense category.
includes defendants in misdemeanor cases which were terminated in c
In this table, “Violent offenses” may include nonnegligent manslaughter;
U.S. district court before a U.S. magistrate. “Fraudulent property” excludes tax fraud; and “Other nonfraudulent property”
a
Starting in 1999, nonviolent sex offenses were reclassified from excludes fraudulent property and includes destruction of property and trespassing.
b
Table A.6. Suspects in criminal matters concluded by U.S. attorneys: Number declined prosecution, by offense,
1994-2002
b
All offenses 34,424 35,896 32,832 29,069 28,786 31,004 30,444 32,250 33,674
Fraudulentc 13,819 14,260 12,446 10,859 9,653 10,578 9,830 10,557 10,430
Otherc 1,472 1,667 1,551 1,311 1,284 1,383 1,230 1,163 1,248
Drug offenses 6,449 7,360 6,898 5,769 6,164 6,261 6,126 6,224 7,076
Regulatory 3,495 3,531 3,172 2,984 3,470 3,605 3,341 3,367 3,089
Other 4,801 4,678 4,363 4,002 4,054 4,751 4,718 5,262 5,610
Weapon offenses 1,982 1,784 1,601 1,301 1,279 1,660 2,566 2,938 2,848
Immigration offenses 293 366 324 302 370 472 497 523 545
able offenses 294 369 449 476 246 298 227 170 251
Note: Most serious offense investigated is based on the decision of See Methodology for a listing of detailed offense categories within each major
the assistant U.S. attorney responsible for the matter. Number of c
suspects includes suspects whose matters were declined for “Fraudulent property” excludes tax fraud; and “Other nonfraudulent property”
prosecution by U.S. attorneys upon review. excludes fraudulent property and includes destruction of property and trespassing.
a
b
offense category.
Appendix 29
Table A.7. Defendants in cases proceeded against in U.S. district courts, by offense, 1994-2002
b
All offenses 62,327 63,547 65,480 69,351 78,172 80,031 83,251 82,614 87,727
Felonies 47,341 50,483 52,656 57,022 64,769 67,442 71,072 70,837 76,163
Fraudulentc 10,301 10,909 11,525 11,371 12,401 12,028 12,659 12,293 13,511
Otherc 2,854 2,928 2,605 2,519 2,554 2,751 2,578 2,471 2,615
Drug offenses 20,275 20,983 21,677 24,693 28,021 29,306 29,455 30,301 30,673
Trafficking 20,052 20,191 20,522 23,403 26,318 27,296 27,734 28,315 28,406
Possession and 223 792 1,155 1,290 1,703 2,010 1,721 1,986 2,267
Regulatory 1,256 1,265 1,123 1,117 1,359 1,245 1,264 1,218 1,021
Other 3,423 3,482 3,228 3,156 3,130 3,662 3,872 3,377 3,830
Weapon offenses 3,557 4,212 3,651 3,837 4,287 4,924 6,073 6,495 8,104
Misdemeanorsc 14,980 13,036 12,774 12,267 13,254 12,474 12,104 11,703 11,493
able offenses 6 28 50 62 149 115 75 74 71
Note: Most serious offense charged is based on the offense carrying the c
most severe statutory maximum penalty. property” excludes tax fraud; “Other nonfraudulent property”
a excludes fraudulent property and includes destruction of property and trespassing;
Starting in 1999, nonviolent sex offenses were reclassified from “Violent
offenses” to “Public-order offenses.” and "Misdemeanors" include misdemeanors, petty offenses, and unknown offense
b levels.
Includes defendants whose offense category could not be determined.
Table A.8. Defendants in cases terminating in U.S. district courts, by offense, 1994-2002
charged
All offensesb 61,404 56,480 61,434 64,956 69,769 75,723 76,952 77,145 80,424
Felonies 47,292 44,462 49,283 53,097 57,054 62,839 65,656 66,112 70,225
c
Violent offenses 3,227 2,864 3,091 3,241 3,470 3,093 2,964 2,977 2,927
Fraudulentc 10,193 9,817 10,260 11,152 10,965 11,587 11,590 11,563 12,324
Otherc 2,989 2,609 2,556 2,573 2,528 2,468 2,490 2,387 2,443
Drug offenses 20,219 18,189 20,305 22,374 24,317 27,008 27,274 28,227 29,300
Trafficking 20,056 17,823 19,486 21,379 22,952 25,334 25,579 26,501 27,254
Possession and 163 366 819 995 1,365 1,674 1,695 1,726 2,046
Regulatory 1,383 1,181 1,151 1,069 1,104 1,306 1,229 1,166 1,129
Other 3,237 2,917 2,966 3,038 2,906 3,531 3,461 3,236 3,516
Weapon offenses 3,673 3,674 3,843 3,485 3,901 4,087 5,049 5,814 6,556
Misdemeanorsc 14,111 11,989 12,115 11,795 12,611 12,793 11,214 10,952 10,131
able offenses 1 29 36 64 104 91 82 81 68
most severe statutory maximum penalty. “Fraudulent property” excludes tax fraud; “Other nonfraudulent property”
b levels.

Table A.9. Defendants in cases terminating in U.S. district courts: Percent convicted, by offense, 1994-2002
Most serious offense charged 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999a 2000a 2001a 2002a
b
All offenses 82.6% 84.2% 86.4% 87.1% 87.4% 87.2% 88.6% 88.8% 89.3%
Felonies 86.2 86.6 89.0 89.8 90.1 90.5 91.5 91.5 91.9
c 87.9 88.7 88.1 89.9 90.3 89.9 90.3 90.3 92.1
Violent offenses
Property offenses 87.3 87.5 89.5 89.7 90.0 90.4 91.0 90.6 90.8
Fraudulentc 87.7 88.0 89.6 89.8 90.0 90.6 91.0 90.8 90.9
Otherc 85.9 85.6 89.5 89.3 90.1 89.9 90.9 89.7 90.1
Drug offenses 85.9 85.6 88.3 89.3 89.5 89.9 91.2 91.6 92.4
Trafficking 86.0 85.5 88.3 89.3 89.4 89.8 91.3 91.5 92.4
Possession and other 78.5 88.3 88.2 89.0 91.3 91.2 90.7 92.8 92.4
Public-order offenses 81.0 83.3 84.5 85.9 87.2 86.2 87.3 87.1 87.7
Regulatory 81.3 79.8 82.5 85.7 84.9 83.7 86.6 84.8 87.3
Other 80.8 84.7 85.2 85.9 88.1 87.1 87.6 88.0 87.8
Weapon offenses 85.2 84.8 87.5 87.6 87.5 88.6 88.4 90.0 89.0
Immigration offenses 92.2 93.6 96.1 95.9 94.7 95.4 95.9 95.1 95.3
c
Misdemeanors 70.4 75.2 75.6 74.8 75.2 71.2 71.6 73.0 71.0
most severe statutory maximum penalty. “Fraudulent property” excludes tax fraud; “Other nonfraudulent property”
b levels.
Table A.10. Offenders convicted and sentenced in U.S. district courts, by offense, 1994-2002
Most serious offense of 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999a 2000a 2001a 2002a
conviction
All offensesb 50,701 47,556 53,076 56,570 60,958 66,055 68,156 68,533 71,798
Felonies 39,624 37,713 42,992 46,878 50,494 55,864 59,123 59,363 63,238
Fraudulentc 8,671 8,484 9,055 9,919 9,752 10,203 10,396 10,359 11,107
Otherc 2,442 2,085 2,070 2,091 2,110 2,029 2,058 1,990 1,994
Drug offenses 16,400 14,778 17,365 19,115 20,867 23,476 24,206 25,088 26,234
Trafficking 16,197 14,322 16,485 18,057 19,417 21,698 22,275 23,248 24,174
Possession and other 203 456 880 1,058 1,450 1,778 1,931 1,840 2,060
Regulatory 1,309 1,177 1,169 1,211 1,187 1,410 1,376 1,410 1,403
Other 2,714 2,659 2,711 2,751 2,771 3,251 3,209 2,937 3,227
Weapon offenses 3,232 3,062 3,033 2,871 3,160 3,423 4,196 4,925 5,563
Misdemeanorsc 11,072 9,818 10,054 9,636 10,375 10,118 8,961 9,100 8,499
Unknown or indeterminable
offenses 5 25 30 56 89 73 72 70 61
Note: Most serious offense is based on the disposition offense with the c
most severe sentence. “Fraudulent property” excludes tax fraud; “Other nonfraudulent property”
b levels.
Includes offenders whose offense category could not be determined or
whose sentence was unknown. See Methodology for a listing of detailed
offense categories within each major offense category.
Appendix 31
Table A.11. Offenders convicted and sentenced in U.S. district courts: Number sentenced to prison, by offense,
1994-2002
conviction
All offensesb 33,022 31,805 36,373 39,431 43,041 47,659 50,451 51,057 53,682
Felonies 31,070 29,759 34,345 37,747 41,420 46,070 49,070 49,509 52,246
c 2,518 2,209 2,419 2,619 2,808 2,489 2,360 2,399 2,408
Violent offenses
Fraudulentc 4,868 4,928 5,322 5,871 5,860 6,067 6,272 6,537 6,654
Otherc 1,543 1,287 1,237 1,239 1,254 1,137 1,190 1,207 1,092
Drug offenses 14,973 13,502 15,984 17,637 19,280 21,694 22,352 23,074 23,951
Trafficking 14,841 13,133 15,248 16,718 18,013 20,117 20,633 21,422 22,107
Possession and other 132 369 736 919 1,267 1,577 1,719 1,652 1,844
Regulatory 644 572 540 603 506 627 647 597 641
Other 1,766 1,707 1,887 1,853 1,918 2,438 2,342 2,089 2,412
Weapon offenses 2,901 2,803 2,773 2,663 2,914 3,191 3,834 4,541 5,134
c
Misdemeanors 1,948 2,039 2,020 1,679 1,590 1,556 1,356 1,515 1,408
able offenses 4 7 8 5 31 33 25 33 28
Note: Most serious offense of conviction is based on the disposition or whose sentence was unknown. See Methodology for a listing of detailed
offense with the most severe sentence. Number of offenders includes offense categories within each major offense category.
offenders given life and death sentences, and includes new law c
offenders given prison-community split sentences (prison and conditions “Fraudulent property” excludes tax fraud; “Other nonfraudulent property” excludes
of alternative community confinement). Number of offenders also fraudulent property and includes destruction of property and trespassing; and
includes offenders given mixed sentences of prison plus probation, "Misdemeanors" include misdemeanors, petty offenses, and unknown offense
applicable only to offenders sentenced pursuant to laws applicable prior levels.
to the Sentencing Reform Act of 1984.
a
b
Includes offenders whose offense category could not be determined
Table A.12. Criminal appeals filed, by offense, 1994-2002
conviction
All offensesb 10,674 10,162 10,889 10,521 10,535 10,251 9,162 11,281 11,569
c 856 700 685 739 742 559 490 591 606
Violent offenses
Fraudulentc 1,410 1,323 1,581 1,519 1,439 1,338 1,164 1,299 1,389
Otherc 539 444 512 453 508 401 318 382 337
Drug offenses 5,102 4,499 5,099 4,750 4,845 4,513 3,843 4,529 4,689
Public-order offenses 1,037 886 985 1,050 878 954 827 1,024 876
Regulatory 288 220 196 224 178 162 150 144 128
Other 749 666 789 826 700 792 677 880 642
Weapon offenses 1,141 1,034 1,183 1,135 982 1,070 872 1,266 1,386
Immigration offenses 261 277 353 417 693 934 1,179 1,654 1,679
able offenses 328 999 491 458 448 482 469 536 607
c
Note: Appeals were classified into the offense category that represents the offense of In this table, “Violent offenses” may include nonnegligent
conviction. Offenses represent the statutory offense charged against a defendant in a manslaughter; “Fraudulent property” excludes tax fraud; and “Other
criminal appeal. aStarting in 1999, nonviolent sex offenses were reclassified from nonfraudulent property” excludes fraudulent property and includes
“Violent offenses” to “Public-order offenses.” bIncludes offenders whose offense destruction of property and trespassing.
category could not be determined. See Methodology for a listing of detailed offense
categories within each major offense category.

Table A.13. Offenders convicted and sentenced in U.S. district courts: Number sentenced to probation only,
by offense, 1994-2002
conviction
All offensesb 12,781 11,602 11,789 12,046 12,108 12,408 11,937 11,473 11,774
Felonies 7,677 7,030 7,138 7,387 7,208 7,491 7,477 7,386 7,818
c 164 198 209 223 235 182 149 160 118
Violent offenses
Fraudulentc 3,477 3,217 3,238 3,475 3,249 3,340 3,372 3,102 3,542
Otherc 850 770 797 800 795 831 794 703 807
Drug offenses 1,204 992 1,011 1,054 1,092 1,134 1,130 1,249 1,345
Trafficking 1,139 926 888 940 952 981 971 1,105 1,175
Possession and other 65 66 123 114 140 153 159 144 170
Public-order offenses 1,469 1,428 1,278 1,343 860 1,405 1,373 1,481 1,343
Regulatory 575 531 542 522 582 665 619 712 630
Other 894 897 736 821 278 740 754 769 713
Weapon offenses 296 221 229 182 208 190 297 326 340
Immigration offenses 217 204 376 310 769 409 362 365 323
c
Misdemeanors 5,103 4,556 4,631 4,612 4,844 4,879 4,416 4,051 3,925
able offenses 1 16 20 47 56 38 44 36 31
Note: Most serious offense of conviction is based on the disposition c
offense with the most severe sentence. Number of offenders includes “Fraudulent property” excludes tax fraud; “Other nonfraudulent property”
offenders given probation plus conditions of confinement, such as home excludes fraudulent property and includes destruction of property and
confinement or intermittent confinement. trespassing; and "Misdemeanors" include misdemeanors, petty offenses, and
a unknown offense levels.
offenses” to “Public-order offenses.”
b
offense categories within each major offense category.
Table A.14. Offenders convicted and sentenced in U.S. district courts: Mean number of months of imprisonment
imposed, by offense, 1994-2002
conviction
All offensesb 62.6 mo 63.3 mo 61.7 mo 59.3 mo 58.9 mo 58.1 mo 56.8 mo 56.7 mo 57.1 mo
Felonies 65.6 66.8 64.6 61.5 60.6 59.6 58.0 58.0 58.4
c 92.3 98.5 92.7 86.1 84.4 88.1 86.6 90.7 88.6
Violent offenses
Property offenses 26.4 27.3 24.1 24.4 25.6 24.1 24.3 24.2 25.1
Fraudulentc 20.0 21.9 21.1 22.1 22.4 22.4 22.5 22.3 23.5
Otherc 46.2 47.5 37.0 35.2 40.4 33.0 33.4 34.9 34.8
Drug offenses 83.9 87.1 84.8 81.1 78.7 75.4 75.6 73.9 76.0
Trafficking 84.2 87.7 85.1 81.3 78.3 74.8 75.2 73.6 75.7
Possession and other 45.6 66.4 77.1 77.7 84.3 83.4 81.1 78.9 79.6
Public-order offenses 36.3 36.7 43.2 41.8 43.3 47.0 42.5 39.4 38.4
Regulatory 32.2 27.8 26.7 26.5 27.8 26.3 28.0 23.6 25.9
Other 37.9 39.7 48.0 46.8 47.4 52.4 46.5 43.9 41.8
Weapon offenses 83.2 95.0 100.3 102.1 101.3 99.5 92.2 87.3 83.8
Immigration offenses 22.9 24.0 22.9 23.0 26.4 30.7 29.5 29.2 27.9
c
Misdemeanors 12.3 9.8 11.1 10.1 11.6 10.8 10.3 10.0 9.6
Note: Most serious offense of conviction is based on the disposition offense offense categories within each major offense category.
with the most severe sentence. Calculations exclude offenders given life or c
death sentences, and old law offenders given mixed sentences of prison “Fraudulent property” excludes tax fraud; “Other nonfraudulent property”
plus probation. For new law offenders given prison-community split excludes fraudulent property and includes destruction of property and
sentences, only the prison portion of the sentence is included in trespassing; and "Misdemeanors" include misdemeanors, petty offenses, and
calculations. unknown offense levels.
a
b
Appendix 33
Table A.15. Offenders under Federal supervision, by offense, 1994-2002
conviction
All offensesb 87,689 85,662 88,189 90,751 92,813 96,502 99,500 103,348 107,367
c
Felonies 74,597 74,260 76,851 79,804 81,828 85,759 89,048 93,113 97,518
d 4,873 4,753 5,036 5,270 5,577 5,439 5,807 6,163 6,281
Violent offenses
Fraudulentd 22,609 21,989 22,034 22,621 22,678 23,381 23,904 23,947 24,439
Otherd 5,916 5,523 5,174 4,964 4,841 4,881 4,867 4,904 4,829
Drug offenses 28,238 29,343 31,859 33,743 35,402 37,929 39,700 42,333 44,980
Trafficking 26,841 26,865 28,517 29,942 31,416 33,774 35,437 38,001 40,414
Possession and other 1,397 2,478 3,342 3,801 3,986 4,155 4,263 4,332 4,566
Regulatory 2,275 2,192 2,104 2,187 2,196 2,331 2,417 2,604 2,570
Other 5,609 5,652 5,474 5,442 5,560 6,052 6,082 6,169 12,938
Weapon offenses 3,924 3,731 3,832 3,908 4,038 4,123 4,522 4,977 5,662
Immigration offenses 1,083 959 1,180 1,405 1,272 1,334 1,537 1,807 2,095
Misdemeanorsd 13,092 11,402 11,338 10,947 10,985 10,743 10,452 10,235 9,849
Note: Most serious offense of conviction is based on the offense with See Methodology for a listing of detailed offense categories within each major
the longest sentence imposed. Number of offenders includes offenders offense category.
under active supervision at the close of the fiscal year. This population c
Includes offenders whose felony offense category could not be determined. A
includes offenders under the three major forms of supervision: felony offense category could not be determined for 70 offenders during 1994, 118
probation, supervised release, and parole. Included under parole are during 1995, 158 during 1996, 264 during 1997, 264 during 1998, 289 during 1999,
two less common types of old law release: mandatory release and 212 during 2000, 208 during 2001, and 193 during 2002.
special parole. Excluded from the number of offenders under active d
supervision reported in the table are offenders released to military parole “Fraudulent property” excludes tax fraud; “Other nonfraudulent property” excludes
and offenders under community supervision prior to sentencing (such as fraudulent property and includes destruction of property and trespassing; and
during pretrial release or pretrial investigation). "Misdemeanors" include misdemeanors, petty offenses, and unknown offense
a
Starting in 1999, nonviolent sex offenses were reclassified from “Violent levels.
b
Includes offenders whose offense category could not be determined.
Table A.16. Population at the end of the year in Federal prisons, by offense, 1994-2002
Most serious original offense
of conviction 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998a 1999b 2000b, c 2001b,c 2002b,c
d
All offenses 84,362 88,658 92,672 98,944 108,925 119,185 129,329 136,395 143,031
Violent offensese 11,179 11,409 11,523 11,658 12,656 13,355 12,973 13,385 13,549
Fraudulente 5,725 5,823 5,807 6,148 6,465 6,553 7,497 7,605 7,798
Othere 2,163 2,019 1,974 2,003 2,162 2,129 2,352 2,383 2,302
Drug offenses 50,579 52,782 55,194 58,610 63,011 68,360 73,389 77,210 81,052
Trafficking 50,197 52,401 54,870 58,201 62,564 67,835 72,775 76,695 80,596
Possession and other 382 381 324 409 447 525 614 515 456
Regulatory 878 894 919 1,013 1,059 1,048 1,205 1,148 1,217
Other 3,638 3,895 4,136 4,648 5,042 5,758 6,322 6,461 6,734
Weapon offenses 6,774 7,446 7,696 8,082 8,742 9,494 10,652 12,150 13,725
able offenses 940 970 947 1,328 2,358 2,332 1,263 1,041 1,083
Note: Most serious offense is based on the offense having the longest Methodology for more information.
sentence. d
Includes prisoners whose offense category could not be determined. See
a
The yearend population for 1998 was adjusted to reflect an additional Methodology for a listing of detailed offense categories within each major offense
1,013 prisoners reported in the Compendium of Federal Justice Statistics, category.
1998. e
b “Fraudulent property” excludes tax fraud; and “Other nonfraudulent property”
offenses” to “Public-order offenses.” excludes fraudulent property and includes destruction of property and trespassing.
c
Starting in 2000, the universe for this table includes offenders in BOP
custody and offenders in contract and private facilities, but not those
committed for violations of the District of Columbia criminal code. See

Federal Criminal Case Processing, 2002: Bureau of Justice Statistics

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U.S.

Bureau of Justice Statistics

Federal Criminal Case

Federal criminal case processing, 1994-2002

Office of Justice Programs

World Wide Web site:

Bureau of Justice Statistics

World Wide Web site:

For information contact

Federal Criminal Case

Federal Justice Statistics: Reconciled Data

January 2005, NCJ 207447

Lawrence A. Greenfeld, Director

This Bureau of Justice Statistics Report was prepared by

Office of Justice Programs

ii Federal Criminal Case Processing, 2002

Federal criminal case processing,

Federal criminal case processing, A.7. Defendants in cases proceeded

2. Suspects in criminal matters investi- A.9. Defendants in cases terminating in

iv Federal Criminal Case Processing, 2002

Federal criminal case processing,

• During 2002, U.S. attorneys initiated investigations

124,335. Investigations for immigration violations in- Defendants prosecuted 87,727

• U.S. attorneys declined to prosecute a smaller pro- Offenders sentenced

• During 2002, 124,074 suspects were arrested by Figure H.1.

charged in criminal cases filed in U.S. district court

Federal Criminal Case Processing, more detail on many of the statistics

Federal criminal case processing, 2002 5

Federal criminal case processing, 2002 7

Number of suspects in criminal matters investigated by U.S. attorneys,

8 Federal Criminal Case Processing, 2002

Federal criminal case processing, 2002 9

Misdemeanorsc 11,493 13.1

10 Federal Criminal Case Processing, 2002

Number of defendants in criminal cases terminated in U.S. district court,

Federal criminal case processing, 2002 11

Defendants convicted in U.S. district court: Percentage sentenced to prison,

12 Federal Criminal Case Processing, 2002

Federal criminal case processing, 2002 13

Offenders under active supervisiona

Feloniesd 97,518 21,290 69.9 3,555 99.9 72,673 99.3

Number of offenders under Federal supervision, by type of supervision,

14 Federal Criminal Case Processing, 2002

20 Average time served by offenders

Federal criminal case processing, 2002 15

Unit of analysis *These categories correspond to the BJS Misdemeanors

18 Federal Criminal Case Processing, 2002

Table M.1. Breakout of main category offenses

20 Federal Criminal Case Processing, 2002

22 Federal Criminal Case Processing, 2002

28 Federal Criminal Case Processing, 2002

30 Federal Criminal Case Processing, 2002

Table A.12. Criminal appeals filed, by offense, 1994-2002

32 Federal Criminal Case Processing, 2002

34 Federal Criminal Case Processing, 2002

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