Published on: Wednesday, September 27, 2023
Yesterday, the United States Sentencing Commission released a new 30-page report titled Federal Escape Offenses, available here. This report provides the characteristics of individuals convicted of escape, then chronologically examines their criminal histories before the instant offense through their criminal behavior while on escape status. It also examines their alleged criminal behavior after being released into the community. Below are seven key findings from the report:
- Escape offenses accounted for less than one percent (0.4%) of all federal offenses between fiscal years 2017 and 2021.
- Individuals sentenced for escape offenses had extensive and serious criminal histories.
- Most federal escapes were from non-secure custody. The majority (89.0%) of individuals escaped from a Residential Reentry Center (i.e., a halfway house).
- The median length of time that individuals sentenced for escape offenses remained at large was one month.
- Nearly all (99.2%) individuals sentenced for an escape offense received a sentence of imprisonment. The average term of imprisonment was 12 months.
- Nearly two-thirds (65.0%) of individuals sentenced for an escape offense were sentenced within the guideline range for their escape crime, compared to 40.2 percent of all other federally sentenced U.S. citizens.
- The majority (85.7%) of individuals sentenced for an escape offense and released in 2010 were rearrested during an eight-year follow-up period, which was higher than individuals sentenced for any other type of federal offense. By comparison, one-half (49.2%) of all other individuals released in 2010 were rearrested during the same time period.