A school shooter in Virginia is one of many ISIS acolytes who received seemingly soft sentences for a federal terrorism charge, according to data obtained by the Daily Caller News Foundation.
Mohamed Jalloh died after killing an ROTC instructor and attacking Army cadets at Old Dominion University (ODU) on March 12. He was released from prison early after providing material support to foreign terrorists. Judges have given pro-ISIS defendants an average sentence of 15 years for Jalloh’s same crime since 2014, five years below what sentencing guidelines typically recommend, the National Counterterrorism Innovation, Technology, and Education Center (NCITE) told the DCNF.
NCITE’s data stems from a broader January study on federal ISIS-related prosecutions between 2014 and 2025 that found cases have steadily increased since 2023, the federally-funded think tank told the DCNF. The “material support” charge made up 73% of ISIS cases, the study found.
That crime should lead to about 5 to 12 years in prison if the offender does not kill anyone, according to federal sentencing guidelines. However, prosecutors can request a terrorism enhancement to the sentence that brings non-lethal cases to 19.5 years or the maximum 20 allowed. A 15-year average for ISIS supporters suggests courts routinely sentence below the guidelines.
The guidelines recommend the enhancement for any crime “that involved, or was intended to promote, a federal crime of terrorism.” Critics who consider the enhancement too aggressive, such as the Muslim Legal Fund of America, have noted that it can apply to practically every material support for terrorism case.
Second Chances
Jalloh’s case is a recent example of a judge going easy on an ISIS-inspired radical — with disastrous results.
The African-born U.S. citizen, who was a National Guard veteran, met with multiple ISIS members and conveyed plans for an attack on par with the 2009 Fort Hood Army base massacre, according to the Department of Justice (DOJ). Jalloh went as far as trying to obtain an AK-47 rifle to slaughter U.S. soldiers, prosecutors said.
Jalloh profusely apologized for his actions during his 2017 sentencing hearing, saying he “did not intend to cause any harm to anyone,” court records show.
“Every time I see any atrocities that ISIS commits, I am disgusted by it because I know this is not what I want to be a part of … I was in a really bad place, looking for some purpose, and it just really all got out of hand,” Jalloh said.
The DOJ based its 20-year sentence request on the basic sentencing guidelines and the terrorism enhancement. Bush-appointed Judge Liam O’Grady sentenced Jalloh to just eleven years and a substance abuse treatment program, which later allowed his release years early in December 2024.
“You have no criminal history, and you have been a law-abiding citizen and a member of the National Guard,” O’Grady told Jalloh at the time. “So I think that the ultimate sentence that I hand down should reflect the good things you have done as well as the horrendous things.”
Eight years later, Jalloh entered a classroom at ODU, asked whether it was an ROTC military class, yelled “Allahu akbar” and began shooting, according to authorities and media reporting. Students reportedly subdued Jalloh in the classroom, allowing one cadet to fatally stab him.
Comprehensive data is not available for pro-ISIS zealots who reoffend, given that many sentences from recent years have likely not concluded. Ethiopian national Mohamed Ibrahim Ahmed is another example; a jury convicted him in 2019 of material support for terrorism for trying to recruit for ISIS while in prison on prior terrorism offenses.
Additionally, federal appeals judges have occasionally overruled lower-level judges in recent years for softly punishing convicted ISIS supporters. An appeals court also affirmed using the terrorism sentencing enhancement in such cases in 2019.
‘Most Likely Terrorist Attack’
Concerns about jihadist threats were heightened after the U.S. and Israel launched a war with Iran in February. Authorities said backlash to the strikes inspired two terrorist attacks in Texas and Michigan, the DCNF previously reported. Police also arrested two teens suspected of attempting an ISIS-inspired bombing in New York City.
Despite ISIS opposing the Iranian regime, it and other terrorist organizations have capitalized on Middle Eastern conflicts for propaganda since Hamas sparked conflict with Israel in October 2023, according to a Wednesday threat assessment by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (ODNI).
Trump’s military largely destroyed ISIS in his first term after the extremists declared a caliphate in 2014 and made headlines for gruesome beheadings. Since then, the group has increasingly turned to the internet to radicalize followers into violence worldwide, according to the Wednesday threat assessment. ISIS currently has between 12,000 and 18,000 members, the ODNI said.
Though jihadists still want to attack America from abroad, “the most likely terrorist attack scenario in the Homeland involves U.S.-based lone offenders,” the assessment found.
“Al-Qa’ida and ISIS plotters intent on targeting the Homeland have focused more on virtually recruiting U.S.-based aspirants to encourage and enable potential attacks,” officials warned.
All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact [email protected].
