Judicial circuitsFY2018–FY2025
Third Circuit
3d Cir. · 6 districts · Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, U.S. Virgin Islands
The datafile contains cases reported to the Commission with sentencing documents. Sentence length statistics use the Commission's capped variable (sentences of 470 months or longer, including life, are recorded as 470 months) and exclude sentences of probation or a fine only. Figures are aggregates of past cases and are not a prediction for any case.
§ 1Districts compared
| District | Cases | Prison | Median months | Within range | Below, gov. | Below, other | Above |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| District of Delaware D. Del. | 769 | 93% | 24 | 47% | 30% | 20% | 3% |
| District of New Jersey D.N.J. | 5,178 | 86% | 37 | 37% | 41% | 21% | 1% |
| Eastern District of Pennsylvania E.D. Pa. | 4,201 | 89% | 46 | 34% | 40% | 24% | 2% |
| Middle District of Pennsylvania M.D. Pa. | 3,355 | 91% | 46 | 46% | 28% | 24% | 1% |
| Western District of Pennsylvania W.D. Pa. | 3,701 | 86% | 48 | 39% | 30% | 27% | 4% |
| District of the Virgin Islands D.V.I. | 515 | 89% | 36 | 70% | 11% | 16% | 3% |
Whole period, FY2018–FY2025. Medians are of cases with a prison term.
§ 2Summary
The Third Circuit covers 6 districts (Delaware, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and U.S. Virgin Islands). Its courts sentenced 17,719 cases reported to the Commission across 8 fiscal years (FY2018–FY2025), 2,222 of them in FY2025; the District of New Jersey is the busiest with 5,178.
The circuit's median prison term was 41 months (3 yr 5 mo), longer than the national 24 months, and 40% of sentences were within the guideline range (nationally 47%).
Caseload in FY2025 was about the same as in FY2018. The median prison term was about the same in FY2025 as in FY2018.
§ 3Length of prison terms
§ 4Position relative to the guideline range
Within guideline range 40%Above range 2%Below range, government sponsored 35%Below range, other 23%Not determinable 40
| Measure | 3d Cir. | All districts |
|---|---|---|
| Median prison months | 41 | 24 |
| Cases with a prison term | 88% | 92% |
| Within guideline range | 40% | 47% |
| Above range | 2% | 3% |
| Below range, government sponsored | 35% | 29% |
| Below range, other | 23% | 21% |
§ 5Offence mix
| Primary offence type | Cases | Share | Median months | Within range |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Drug Trafficking | 6,416 | 36.2% | 60 | 32% |
| Fraud/Theft/Embezzlement | 2,716 | 15.3% | 18 | 40% |
| Firearms | 2,673 | 15.1% | 46 | 45% |
| Immigration | 1,543 | 8.7% | 5 | 73% |
| Robbery | 785 | 4.4% | 96 | 36% |
| Child Pornography | 494 | 2.8% | 96 | 37% |
| Money Launder | 479 | 2.7% | 37 | 28% |
| Sex Abuse | 464 | 2.6% | 210 | 34% |
| Tax | 455 | 2.6% | 13 | 24% |
| Prison Offenses | 281 | 1.6% | 11 | 45% |
| Bribery/Corruption | 237 | 1.3% | 18 | 20% |
| Administration of Justice | 186 | 1.0% | 12 | 54% |
§ 6Trend by fiscal year
| Fiscal year | Cases | Prison | Median months | Within range | Below, gov. | Below, other | Above |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY2018 | 2,123 | 87% | 40 | 41% | 33% | 24% | 3% |
| FY2019 | 2,343 | 87% | 37 | 44% | 29% | 26% | 2% |
| FY2020 | 1,931 | 88% | 36 | 42% | 30% | 26% | 2% |
| FY2021 | 1,900 | 87% | 38 | 40% | 31% | 26% | 3% |
| FY2022 | 2,351 | 88% | 41 | 39% | 33% | 26% | 2% |
| FY2023 | 2,362 | 89% | 46 | 37% | 39% | 22% | 2% |
| FY2024 | 2,487 | 90% | 46 | 38% | 42% | 19% | 2% |
| FY2025 | 2,222 | 90% | 44 | 40% | 38% | 19% | 3% |
§ 7Questions and answers
Which districts are in the Third Circuit?
District of Delaware, District of New Jersey, Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Middle District of Pennsylvania, Western District of Pennsylvania and District of the Virgin Islands.
How do sentences vary across the Third Circuit?
District medians over FY2018–FY2025 range from 24 to 48 months. Offence mix explains much of it: the district pages break each one down by offence type.
How often are sentences within the guideline range in the Third Circuit?
40% over FY2018–FY2025, with 35% below the range on a government motion and 23% below it for other reasons.
§ 8Provenance
Source: United States Sentencing Commission, Individual Offender Datafiles, fiscal years 2018–2025 (US government works), aggregated by this site; the FY2025 file is dated 29 Apr 2026. Circuit is the Commission's MONCIRC code 3. Counts below 10 are hidden or pooled. Errors in this site's processing are corrected at the next build; see corrections. Methodology.