Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald — Federal Sentencing Patterns

U.S. District Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald sits in the Central District of California (CDCA) and granted a downward variance in 182 of 232 federal sentencings (78.4%) from FY2012–FY2025. This page shows aggregate sentencing patterns for Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald, including the most common reasons cited on the Statement of Reasons (SOR) for granting a downward variance.

Top reasons Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald grants downward variances

Reasons included across all guideline chapters (182 below-guideline cases out of 232 cases identified)

ReasonCasesAvg % Below Min
  1. 1.Mule/Role in the offense74-37.2%
  2. 2.(5H1.6) Family ties and responsibilities69-39.0%
  3. 3.Mens Rea55-38.2%
  4. 4.Lack of Youthful Guidance53-37.7%
  5. 5.Remorse45-44.0%
  6. 6.(5H1.1) Age (Defendant's youth or old age)39-42.9%
  7. 7.(5H1.4) Drug dependence and alcohol abuse37-33.5%
  8. 8.Reduce Disparity (aggregated reason)36-42.7%
  9. 9.Criminal History Issues (aggregated reason)29-35.6%
  10. 10.(5H1.5) Previous employment record25-41.2%

Zone D sentencing variance — Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald

Imprisonment-only recommended sentencing zone (offense level 14+ at any criminal history). Of Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald's 196 Zone D sentencings, 160 (81.6%) fell below range.

Zone D · imprisonment recommended196 cases
  • Within range
    33(16.8%)
  • Below range
    160(81.6%)
    avg −35.6% below min
  • Above range
    3(1.5%)
    avg +47.1% above max

Need case-level analysis for Judge Michael W. Fitzgerald?

Want to see what those 182 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 Michael W. Fitzgerald's trial tax (sentences after trial vs. plea) and the average §5K1.1 cooperation discount.

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