Report: The Criminal History of Federal Economic Crime Offenders
Date:  03-04-2020

Approximately fifty percent of those who committed a federal economic crime had at least one prior conviction
Key Findings from the United States Sentencing Commission report:

  • The application of guideline criminal history provisions differed among the different types of economic crime offenders.

  • The extent of prior convictions differed among the different types of economic crime offenders.

  • About half of all federal economic crime offenders had at least one prior conviction in their criminal history.

  • Prior convictions were most common among counterfeit and forgery (71.1%), identity theft (70.4%), credit card fraud (68.7%), and financial institution fraud (68.6%) offenders.

  • Prior convictions were least common among computer-related (29.6%) and government procurement (25.4%) fraud offenders.

  • Federal economic crime offenders did not “specialize” in economic crime.

  • Convictions for prior economic offenses were not the predominant types of prior convictions.

  • Fourteen percent of federal economic crime offenders had convictions for prior economic offenses only, to the exclusion of other types of convictions.

  • Convictions for prior “other” offenses, such as DUI and public order, were the predominant types of prior convictions.

  • The severity of criminal history differed for offenders in the specific types of economic crime.

  • Financial institution fraud, credit card fraud, identity theft, mail-related fraud, and counterfeit and forgery offenders had relatively serious criminal histories compared to other economic crime offenders.

  • Government procurement and computer-related fraud offenders had comparatively less serious criminal histories compared to other economic crime offenders.

  • Only about one-quarter of federal economic crime offenders with prior convictions were not assigned criminal history points under the guidelines.

    Read the full report here.