NATIONALLY RECOGNIZED FEDERAL LAWYERS
Can you go to prison for assaulting postal worker
|Thanks for visiting Spodek Law Group – a second-generation law firm managed by Todd Spodek. We’ve got over 40 years of combined experience handling federal cases that others won’t touch. You might know us from the Netflix series about Anna Delvey, or our work on the Ghislaine Maxwell juror misconduct case, or the Alec Baldwin stalking matter. If you’re reading this, you probably already know the answer – yes, you can absolutely go to prison for assaulting a postal worker, and the penalties are severe because it’s a federal crime.
This article covers the federal laws protecting postal employees, the prison time you’re facing depending on what happened, real 2024-2025 cases with actual sentences, and why enforcement is more aggressive now. The U.S. Postal Inspection Service – USPIS – doesn’t mess around with these cases.
Two Federal Laws Make This a Serious Crime
Postal workers get protection under two federal statutes: 18 U.S.C. § 111 and 18 U.S.C. § 1114. Section 1114 specifically lists postal service employees among the protected federal officers, section 111 establishes the actual criminal penalties for assaulting them.
The law covers any forcible assault, resistance, opposition, impeding, intimidation, or interference with a postal worker while they’re performing their official duties – or even because of their official duties. That last part matters. You don’t have to catch them delivering mail. If you assault a postal worker at a bar because you’re angry about a late delivery, that’s still a federal offense under this statute.
It’s no defense that you didn’t know the person was a postal employee. Federal prosecutors don’t need to prove you knew your victim worked for USPS. They just need to prove the victim was in fact a postal worker, that you assaulted them, and that the assault occurred during or because of their official duties. The Justice Department’s own manual makes this clear – as of 1996, all federal employees fall under this protection, but postal workers were covered even before that expansion.
Prison Time Depends on What You Actually Did
Simple assault on a postal worker – pushing, shoving, throwing something that doesn’t cause injury – carries up to three years in federal prison and a fine. That’s the baseline. But penalties escalate fast when aggravating factors come into play.
If you use a deadly or dangerous weapon during the assault, the maximum jumps to 20 years in federal prison. Same 20-year maximum if you inflict bodily injury, even without a weapon. “Bodily injury” doesn’t require hospitalization – it just means physical pain or injury, however temporary. A punch that leaves bruising counts. A shove that causes someone to fall and scrape their hands counts. Federal prosecutors have a lot of room to work with here.
The statute defines “deadly or dangerous weapon” broadly. It includes guns and knives, obviously, but also “a weapon intended to cause death or danger but that fails to do so by reason of a defective component.” Translation: even if your weapon malfunctions, you still face the enhanced 20-year maximum.
Real Cases From 2024-2025 Show the Range
Larry French Jr. got 18 months in federal prison. French, 23, from Springfield, Illinois, punched a postal carrier in the face on May 15, 2024. He was sentenced on January 14, 2025. One punch, no weapon, 18 months.
Gregory Ellison got 40 months. Ellison, 42, from Orangeburg, South Carolina, was sentenced in May 2024 after pleading guilty. The Justice Department called it a “violent assault” – aggravating circumstances pushed his sentence higher.
Benjamin Gregory Shirley got 15 months for assaulting a postal employee in Michigan, sentenced in 2025.
A Farmington Hills defendant faced sentencing in May 2025 for a racially motivated assault on a postal worker. Racial motivation is an aggravating factor that adds offense levels under the sentencing guidelines.
The sentences vary because circumstances vary. Federal judges follow U.S. Sentencing Guidelines that assign offense levels based on what happened. A simple push gets treated differently than a punch that causes injury, which gets treated differently than an assault with a weapon or racial motivation.
What Makes Your Sentence Go Up
Federal judges follow U.S. Sentencing Guidelines that assign offense levels based on what actually happened. The base level for assaulting a federal officer starts low, but enhancements stack up fast.
Weapons matter. Discharged a firearm? Add 5 levels. Used a dangerous weapon? Add 4 levels. Brandished a weapon? Add 3 levels. Bodily injury adds levels too – permanent injury adds more than temporary pain.
Targeting a federal officer on account of official duties adds 6 offense levels under §3A1.2. Six levels can turn a 15-month sentence into a 41-month sentence. If you planned the assault beforehand – add 2 more levels. Obstructed justice afterward – expect additional enhancements.
Your criminal history matters. First offense means Category I with lower ranges. Multiple prior felonies might put you in Category V or VI, which means significantly more time for the same offense level. Federal prosecutors know exactly how to charge these cases to maximize offense levels.
USPIS Enforcement Is Aggressive in 2025
The U.S. Postal Inspection Service made 4,754 arrests in 2024, securing 4,228 convictions. Serious crimes against postal workers – robbery, burglary, assault, homicide – doubled from about 600 cases in 2019 to nearly 1,200 cases by 2023.
USPIS isn’t local police – they’re federal agents with national jurisdiction. They coordinate with FBI and U.S. Marshals across state lines. Their conviction rate in 2024 was over 88%. They collect surveillance footage from mail trucks, interview witnesses, and build cases that federal prosecutors present to grand juries within weeks.
In February 2025, a federal grand jury indicted Robert Cordova with robbery of a USPS letter carrier and assaulting a federal employee in San Jose. Cordova faces up to 20 years on the assault charge alone. Cases like this show USPIS takes postal worker assaults seriously – they investigate aggressively and prosecutors charge aggressively.
Why You Need a Federal Criminal Defense Attorney
At Spodek Law Group, we handle federal assault cases – including assaults on postal workers – with the seriousness they deserve. Todd Spodek has many, many years of experience as a second-generation criminal defense lawyer. We’ve represented clients in federal cases that captured national media attention, cases that others said were unwinnable.
Federal assault charges require immediate attention. The moment USPIS contacts you, you need representation. Don’t talk to federal agents without a lawyer present. Federal agents are skilled interrogators – they’re building a case against you, not trying to help you.
We examine every element of the government’s case. Did the assault occur during official duties, or was this a personal dispute? Can they prove you used a dangerous weapon? Can they prove bodily injury? What evidence exists – surveillance video, eyewitness testimony, medical records?
We know the sentencing guidelines, we know what enhancements apply, and we know what arguments federal judges find persuasive. Sometimes the best outcome is a plea agreement that eliminates the most serious charges. Other times we take the case to trial. It depends on the evidence, your criminal history, and what actually happened. We’re available 24/7 to fight for the best possible result.
The answer to “can you go to prison for assaulting a postal worker” is absolutely yes – and for a long time if aggravating factors apply. But federal charges aren’t convictions. The government has to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt. With experienced federal criminal defense representation, you have options.