Federal Sentencing Primer

After a plea deal is signed, which happens in well over 90% of federal criminal prosecutions, the next phase in a case is sentencing. Most first-time offenders really don’t know exactly how this sentencing is done or considered by federal courts, prosecutors, and judges.

While defense attorney’s are supposed to do a thorough job explaining this process, and most do their best, the process is still mystical in the minds of most defendants. This 3-part series is going to dive into the meat of what is held in the Sentencing Guidelines Manual, and how sentences are handed down in federal criminal court.

The Sentencing Guidelines Manual

What is the Sentencing Guidelines Manual? It is a great big book that explains in excruciating detail every possible crime and factor that can be associated with all those crimes when contemplating a sentence.

To explain a little better, say a defendant pleaded guilty to a drug dealing crime. That right there is 8 points. Then the quantity of the drug adds more points. Then a firearm that was carried during the drug deal adds more points. Then the prior convictions of the defendant get factored in and, voila, a range of 110-128 months is the final outcome.

The purpose of this series is to explain just how all of this works. From the simple to the complex, after reading all three parts to this series, the basic process will be easy to follow and, hopefully, take some of the mystery and fear away from a few defendants and their families out there in America.

Part 1: The Base Offense Level
Part 2: Offense Level Adjustments
Part 3: Criminal History Category
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About PCR Consultants

PCR Consultants started 8 years ago as a small consulting and document preparation firm specializing in federal criminal cases. Specifically, we started helping clients who couldn’t afford, or didn’t want, a private defense attorney to help them apply for early release from federal probation.

Today we help clients in all phases of federal prosecution, from arrest to probation. We even do pardon applications. For a free consultation about federal sentencing questions, e-mail us at [email protected] or give us a call at (480) 382-9287.