Judge Stephen Henley Locher — Federal Sentencing Patterns

U.S. District Judge Stephen Henley Locher sits in the Southern District of Iowa (SDIA) and granted a downward variance in 117 of 231 federal sentencings (50.6%) from FY2020–FY2025. This page shows aggregate sentencing patterns for Judge Stephen Henley Locher, including the most common reasons cited on the Statement of Reasons (SOR) for granting a downward variance.

Top reasons Judge Stephen Henley Locher grants downward variances

Reasons included across all guideline chapters (117 below-guideline cases out of 231 cases identified)

ReasonCasesAvg % Below Min
  1. 1.(5H1.4) Drug dependence and alcohol abuse42-22.3%
  2. 2.Lack of Youthful Guidance34-20.7%
  3. 3.Mental and Emotional Conditions (aggregated reason)32-24.7%
  4. 4.Criminal History Issues (aggregated reason)25-22.4%
  5. 5.(5H1.1) Age (Defendant's youth or old age)22-33.7%
  6. 6.Acceptance of responsibility19-35.8%
  7. 7.(5H1.6) Family ties and responsibilities18-28.3%
  8. 8.Policy Disagreement with the Guidelines (Kimbrough v. U.S. 552 U.S. 85 (2007)13-28.5%
  9. 9.Rehabilitation12-47.6%
  10. 10.Conduct on Release/Bond/Supervision12-39.4%

Zone D sentencing variance — Judge Stephen Henley Locher

Imprisonment-only recommended sentencing zone (offense level 14+ at any criminal history). Of Judge Stephen Henley Locher's 210 Zone D sentencings, 107 (51.0%) fell below range.

Zone D · imprisonment recommended210 cases
  • Within range
    92(43.8%)
  • Below range
    107(51.0%)
    avg −22.6% below min
  • Above range
    11(5.2%)
    avg +35.2% above max

Need case-level analysis for Judge Stephen Henley Locher?

Want to see what those 117 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 Stephen Henley Locher's trial tax (sentences after trial vs. plea) and the average §5K1.1 cooperation discount.

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