Judge Karen Schreier — Federal Sentencing Patterns

U.S. District Judge Karen Schreier sits in the District of South Dakota (DSD) and granted a downward variance in 461 of 1,082 federal sentencings (42.6%) from FY2012–FY2025. This page shows aggregate sentencing patterns for Judge Karen Schreier, including the most common reasons cited on the Statement of Reasons (SOR) for granting a downward variance.

Top reasons Judge Karen Schreier grants downward variances

Reasons included across all guideline chapters (461 below-guideline cases out of 1,082 cases identified)

ReasonCasesAvg % Below Min
  1. 1.Criminal History Issues (aggregated reason)88-34.9%
  2. 2.(5K2.0) General aggravating or mitigating circumstance67-48.7%
  3. 3.Mule/Role in the offense63-33.7%
  4. 4.Reduce Disparity (aggregated reason)57-32.9%
  5. 5.(5H1.6) Family ties and responsibilities47-60.6%
  6. 6.(5H1.1) Age (Defendant's youth or old age)46-43.4%
  7. 7.(5H1.4) Drug dependence and alcohol abuse36-43.7%
  8. 8.(5H1.5) Previous employment record34-61.3%
  9. 9.Rehabilitation27-57.7%
  10. 10.Time Served27-25.6%

Zone D sentencing variance — Judge Karen Schreier

Imprisonment-only recommended sentencing zone (offense level 14+ at any criminal history). Of Judge Karen Schreier's 861 Zone D sentencings, 362 (42.0%) fell below range.

Zone D · imprisonment recommended861 cases
  • Within range
    471(54.7%)
  • Below range
    362(42.0%)
    avg −33.1% below min
  • Above range
    28(3.3%)
    avg +62.0% above max

Need case-level analysis for Judge Karen Schreier?

Want to see what those 461 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 Karen Schreier's trial tax (sentences after trial vs. plea) and the average §5K1.1 cooperation discount.

EXPLORE JUST METRICS →