Judge James Block Zagel
September 2012: Median Prison Sentence

District Court - Illinois North
Referring Agency: Federal Bureau of Investigation

Show Details   Judge Compared
To District
Compared
To U.S.
Latest Fiscal Year 60.0 5.3% 37.9%
Previous Fiscal Year 40.0 -25.9% -2.4%
Past 5 Years 48.0 -11.1% 14.3%

Table 1: Current and 5 Year
Median Prison Sentence Comparison

For all cases disposed of in the current fiscal year (2012) that were credited to Judge James Block Zagel in the Northern District of Illinois, the median prison sentence was 60.0 months, when looking only at cases referred by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. This number is 5.3% higher than the median prison sentence for all the Northern District of Illinois matters disposed in the same period. At the same time, the judge's median prison sentence was 37.9% higher than the typical 2012 sentence for the nation as a whole. During the current fiscal year, Judge James Block Zagel has sentenced 17 defendants compared with 11 defendants during the twelve months of the previous fiscal year.

Focusing on a five-year period, the median prison sentence imposed on defendants that were credited to Judge Zagel was 48.0 months. This was 11.1% lower than the 54.0 months typical in Illinois North and 14.3% higher than the 42.0 months median prison sentence for the nation. Judge James Block Zagel sentenced 67 defendants during the past five years.

(CAUTION: The kinds of cases handled by individual judges influences statistical information about their sentences. It therefore is important to consider the breakdown of cases that each has handled, available below, when making judge-by-judge comparisons.)

Bar chart of start

Figure 1: Five Year Comparison of Median Prison Sentence
in Months

Figure 1 compares Judge Zagel's numbers to those for judges in this district and in the United States as a whole for cases of this type over the last five years.

During the last five years there were 26 other judges in the Northern District of Illinois with information on convictions during that period. Median prison sentence numbers passed down for those judges ranged from 32.0 months to 92.0 months, putting Judge Zagel's median prison sentence of 48.0 months at the lower end of the range. The median prison sentence for the whole Northern District of Illinois during that time was 54.0 months.

Bar chart of label

Figure 2: Detailed Comparison among Judges for the Northern District of Illinois

Professional Biography

Born 1941 in Chicago, IL

Federal Judicial Service
Judge, U. S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois

Nominated by Ronald Reagan on February 2, 1987, to a seat vacated by Frank J. McGarr; Confirmed by the Senate on April 21, 1987, and received commission on April 22, 1987.

Education:
University of Chicago, B.A., 1962
University of Chicago, M.A., 1962
Harvard Law School, J.D., 1965

Professional Career:
Assistant state's attorney, Cook County, Illinois, 1965-1969
Assistant attorney general, State of Illinois, 1969-1977
Deputy chief, Criminal Justice Division, 1969-1970
Chief, Criminal Justice Division, 1970-1977
Chief prosecuting attorney, Illinois Judicial Inquiry Board, 1973-1975
Chief assistant attorney general, State of Arizona, 1975
Executive director, Illinois Law Enforcement Commision, 1977-1979
Director, Department of Revenue, State of Illinois, 1979-1980
Chairman, Governor's Advisory Counsel on Criminal Justice Legislation, 1980-1987
Director of state police, State of Illinois, 1980-1987

Program Areas of Cases Handled

Cases disposed of by Judge James Block Zagel for the past five years fell into a number of broad categories. The lead category for these cases was Other accounting for 26.9% of cases.

Other major categories with substantial numbers of cases that were disposed by Judge James Block Zagel over the past five years were: Narcotics/Drugs (25.4%), White Collar Crime (17.9%), Organized Crime (16.4%), Withheld by Govt from TRAC (9.0%).

Program Area Judge District US  
Other 26.9% 34.9% 32.8% More
Narcotics/Drugs 25.4% 24.7% 23.1% More
White Collar Crime 17.9% 21.2% 20.7% More
Organized Crime 16.4% 1.5% 2.2% More
Not specified 9.0% 13.4% 10.4%  
Government Regulatory 3.0% 0.6% 1.0%  
National Internal Security/Terrorism 1.5% 0.8% 1.2%  

Table 2: Composition of Cases for the Past Five Years (Top 10)

Lead Charges in Cases Handled

The lead charge with the most cases disposed of by Judge James Block Zagel for the past five years was "21 USC 841 - Drug Abuse Prevention & Control-Prohibited acts A". It accounted for 20.9% of all cases.

Other lead charges with substantial numbers of cases that were disposed by Judge James Block Zagel over the past five years were: "18 USC 1962 - RICO - prohibited activities" (16.4%), "18 USC 2113 - Bank robbery and incidental crimes" (16.4%), "Withheld by govt from TRAC (FOIA challenge pending)" (9.0%), "21 USC 846 - Attempt and conspiracy" (7.5%), "18 USC 1343 - Fraud by wire, radio, or television" (6.0%), "18 USC 371 - Conspiracy to commit offense or to defraud US" (4.5%), "18 USC 1341 - Mail Fraud - Frauds and swindles" (4.5%), "18 USC 1344 - Bank Fraud" (4.5%).

Lead Charge Judge District US  
21 USC 841 - Drug Abuse Prevention & Control-Prohibited acts A 20.9% 13.6% 11.0% More
18 USC 1962 - RICO - prohibited activities 16.4% 0.7% 0.9% More
18 USC 2113 - Bank robbery and incidental crimes 16.4% 23.6% 11.0% More
Not specified 9.0% 13.9% 10.6%  
21 USC 846 - Attempt and conspiracy 7.5% 9.7% 11.0%  
18 USC 1343 - Fraud by wire, radio, or television 6.0% 6.5% 3.2%  
18 USC 371 - Conspiracy to commit offense or to defraud US 4.5% 1.3% 3.0%  
18 USC 1341 - Mail Fraud - Frauds and swindles 4.5% 7.0% 3.8%  
18 USC 1344 - Bank Fraud 4.5% 2.9% 3.8%  
18 USC 656 - Theft/embezzlement/misapplication by bank off, emp 1.5% 0.6% 0.8%  

Table 3: Composition of Cases for the Past Five Years (Top 10)

Number of Defendants in Judge James Block Zagel's Cases

Case Def. Sentence (Months) Sentencing Date Program Category  
1 1 78.00 09/06/12 Bank Robbery Details
2 1 60.00 08/21/12 Drugs-Organized Crime Task Force Details
3 2 0.00 07/17/12 Withheld by Govt from TRAC (FOIA challenge pending) Details
4 1 0.10 06/15/12 Fraud-Financial Institution Details
5 1 2.00 06/14/12 Fraud-Computer Details
6 1 121.00 06/12/12 Drugs-Organized Crime Task Force Details
7 1 90.00 06/08/12 Terrorism-International Details
8 1 0.34 05/31/12 Drugs-Organized Crime Task Force Details
9 1 168.00 05/25/12 Bank Robbery Details
10 2 24.00 04/03/12 Other Criminal Prosecutions Details
10 3 0.33 03/28/12 Other Criminal Prosecutions Details
11 1 144.00 02/29/12 Bank Robbery Details
3 1 90.00 12/22/11 Withheld by Govt from TRAC (FOIA challenge pending) Details
12 1 18.00 12/16/11 Money Laundering-Drug Details
13 1 22.00 12/14/11 Drugs-Organized Crime Task Force Details
14 1 90.00 12/08/11 Other Criminal Prosecutions Details
10 1 168.00 12/07/11 Other Criminal Prosecutions Details

Table 4: Individual Cases and Defendants Disposed of in Current Fiscal Year