Sherman Division (Plano cases)
Federal Sentencing in Collin County (Plano/Sherman) — Facts, Myths & Figures
Collin County — including Plano, Frisco, and McKinney — falls within the Sherman Division of the Eastern District of Texas. The Paul Brown U.S. Courthouse on West Houston Street in Sherman hears indictments from one of the fastest-growing corporate corridors in the country, which drives a heavy white-collar docket.
Quick facts
- Federal court
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Texas — Sherman Division
- Courthouse
- Paul Brown U.S. Courthouse, 101 E. Pecan St., Sherman, TX
- County seat
- McKinney
- Population (est.)
- About 1.2 million
- Most common federal charges
- Health-care fraud, securities fraud, tax, wire fraud, ID theft
White-collar sentencing in the Sherman Division
For fraud cases the guideline math starts at base level 6 or 7 under §2B1.1 and climbs quickly with loss amount, number of victims, and role. A $3.5 million health-care fraud case can produce a starting offense level in the low 30s — 10 years or more before mitigation.
Sherman judges routinely consider the seriousness of the fraud, actual versus intended loss, and the defendant's role. Well-prepared sentencing memoranda with third-party letters, restitution plans, and mental-health evaluations can pull a sentence meaningfully below the calculated range.
Tax and immigration cases
Tax loss under §2T1.1 uses a separate loss table. A $250,000 tax loss adds 12 levels to a base of 6. In immigration prosecutions arising from Collin County employers, §2L1.1 and §2L2.1 govern the guideline calculation.
Myths vs. reality
Myth: Paying restitution before sentencing eliminates prison time.
Reality: Restitution can be a meaningful mitigator but does not zero out a loss-driven offense level. Judges weigh it as one factor under §3553(a).
Myth: A clean record means no prison in a fraud case.
Reality: In Category I, a level-24 offense produces a 51–63 month range. First-time white-collar defendants routinely receive prison sentences when loss is high.
Figures worth knowing
- Loss increase at $3.5 million (§2B1.1)+18 levels
- Level 24, Category I range51–63 months
- Average federal health-care fraud sentence (FY 2023)≈ 30 months(U.S. Sentencing Commission)
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