Judge Eric Claude Schulte — Federal Sentencing Patterns

U.S. District Judge Eric Claude Schulte sits in the District of South Dakota (DSD) and granted a downward variance in 28 of 59 federal sentencings (47.5%) from FY2021–FY2025. This page shows aggregate sentencing patterns for Judge Eric Claude Schulte, including the most common reasons cited on the Statement of Reasons (SOR) for granting a downward variance.

Top reasons Judge Eric Claude Schulte grants downward variances

Reasons included across all guideline chapters (28 below-guideline cases out of 59 cases identified)

ReasonCasesAvg % Below Min
  1. 1.Reduce Disparity (aggregated reason)7-30.1%
  2. 2.(5H1.1) Age (Defendant's youth or old age)5-48.7%
  3. 3.(5H1.5) Previous employment record4-77.4%
  4. 4.Criminal History Issues (aggregated reason)4-51.4%
  5. 5.(5H1.6) Family ties and responsibilities3-60.6%

Zone D sentencing variance — Judge Eric Claude Schulte

Imprisonment-only recommended sentencing zone (offense level 14+ at any criminal history). Of Judge Eric Claude Schulte's 47 Zone D sentencings, 24 (51.1%) fell below range.

Zone D · imprisonment recommended47 cases
  • Within range
    16(34.0%)
  • Below range
    24(51.1%)
    avg −36.0% below min
  • Above range
    7(14.9%)
    avg +65.5% above max

Need case-level analysis for Judge Eric Claude Schulte?

Want to see what those 28 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 Eric Claude Schulte's trial tax (sentences after trial vs. plea) and the average §5K1.1 cooperation discount.

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