Judge David S. Cercone — Federal Sentencing Patterns

U.S. District Judge David S. Cercone sits in the Western District of Pennsylvania (WDPA) and granted a downward variance in 236 of 350 federal sentencings (67.4%) from FY2012–FY2025. This page shows aggregate sentencing patterns for Judge David S. Cercone, including the most common reasons cited on the Statement of Reasons (SOR) for granting a downward variance.

Top reasons Judge David S. Cercone grants downward variances

Reasons included across all guideline chapters (236 below-guideline cases out of 350 cases identified)

ReasonCasesAvg % Below Min
  1. 1.(5H1.6) Family ties and responsibilities60-55.3%
  2. 2.Reduce Disparity (aggregated reason)56-37.5%
  3. 3.Rehabilitation42-56.1%
  4. 4.(5H1.1) Age (Defendant's youth or old age)34-48.7%
  5. 5.Criminal History Issues (aggregated reason)33-47.3%
  6. 6.(5H1.5) Previous employment record23-48.7%
  7. 7.Pursuant to a NONbinding (or unknown type) plea agreement22-34.4%
  8. 8.(5H1.4) Drug dependence and alcohol abuse21-49.3%
  9. 9.Mule/Role in the offense17-58.4%
  10. 10.Avoid unwarranted sentencing disparities among defendants16-34.7%

Zone D sentencing variance — Judge David S. Cercone

Imprisonment-only recommended sentencing zone (offense level 14+ at any criminal history). Of Judge David S. Cercone's 254 Zone D sentencings, 180 (70.9%) fell below range.

Zone D · imprisonment recommended254 cases
  • Within range
    67(26.4%)
  • Below range
    180(70.9%)
    avg −36.8% below min
  • Above range
    7(2.8%)
    avg +41.2% above max

Need case-level analysis for Judge David S. Cercone?

Want to see what those 236 below-guideline cases actually looked like? Just Metrics shows you the actual matched cases — same judge, same guideline chapter, same guideline range — and tells you what they did.

Just Metrics also surfaces Judge David S. Cercone's trial tax (sentences after trial vs. plea) and the average §5K1.1 cooperation discount.

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