Hiring a hitman is punishable by up to 10 years in federal prison if no one is harmed, up to 20 years if the target is injured, and life imprisonment or the death penalty if the target is killed. That is the baseline under 18 U.S.C. § 1958, the federal murder-for-hire statute, and it answers the first question most people have about how long you go to jail for hiring a hitman. The fuller answer is longer, because federal prosecutors rarely bring just one charge, and the person who arranges a killing is treated under federal law the same as the person who carries it out.
The Base Sentence Under the Federal Murder-for-Hire Statute
Section 1958 makes it a crime to use any phone, text, email, social media message, mail, or interstate travel to arrange a killing in exchange for anything of economic value. Cash is not required; anything with value counts as payment. The statute applies equally to the person who hires and the person who agrees to be hired.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1958 – Use of Interstate Commerce Facilities in the Commission of Murder-for-Hire
The penalty tiers are straightforward:
- No injury: up to 10 years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000.
- Personal injury to the target: up to 20 years and a fine of up to $250,000.
- Death of the target: life imprisonment or the death penalty, plus a possible $250,000 fine.
The interstate commerce element is almost always satisfied. A single text message or phone call to set up the arrangement crosses state lines through the networks that carry it, even if the sender and recipient are in the same city.
Charges That Stack On Top
Section 1958 is usually the floor, not the ceiling. Prosecutors layer additional federal statutes, and each one carries its own term of years that a judge can run consecutively.
Solicitation to Commit a Crime of Violence
Under 18 U.S.C. § 373, asking another person to commit a violent felony is itself a crime. When the solicited offense is punishable by life or death, as murder is, solicitation alone carries up to 20 years.2Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 US Code 373 – Solicitation to Commit a Crime of Violence The statute allows one narrow affirmative defense: the defendant voluntarily and completely abandoned the plan and took steps to prevent the crime. Postponing the plan or changing targets does not qualify.
Conspiracy to Commit Murder
Once two people agree on the killing and one of them takes any concrete step toward it, 18 U.S.C. § 1117 applies, with a maximum of any term of years up to life.3Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1117 – Conspiracy to Murder The “concrete step” bar is low. Buying a weapon counts. So does withdrawing cash, researching the target’s routine, or driving to a meeting about the plan. The step does not have to be illegal in itself.
Treated the Same as the Killer
If the killing is completed, the person who hired it is not insulated by distance. Under 18 U.S.C. § 2, anyone who commands or procures a federal crime is punished the same as the person who physically commits it.4Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 2 – Principals First-degree murder under federal law carries death or life imprisonment.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1111 – Murder Being miles away when the trigger is pulled is not a defense.
When the Hitman Is Really an Undercover Agent
Most federal murder-for-hire cases are intercepted before anyone is hurt, because the person approached to do the killing is a law enforcement officer or an informant. The charges do not shrink. Solicitation is complete the moment the request is made and intent is shown. The murder does not have to be possible, the hitman does not have to be real, and no money has to change hands.
If a hired killer attempts the murder and fails, 18 U.S.C. § 1113 adds attempted murder, carrying up to 20 years on its own.6Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 USC 1113 – Attempt to Commit Murder or Manslaughter That gets stacked on the murder-for-hire and conspiracy counts.
Defendants in sting cases often argue entrapment, but it rarely works. Federal courts ask whether the defendant was predisposed to commit the crime before the government got involved. Seeking out a killer, naming a target, discussing payment, and handing over details about the victim’s schedule typically settles that question against the defendant.
State Charges Can Run Alongside
Federal law is not the only exposure. Every state criminalizes solicitation of murder, and a state can prosecute even if no interstate communication was involved. State penalties for solicitation of first-degree murder commonly run from about 10 years to life, with some states imposing mandatory minimums and treating the solicitation at or near the same level as the murder itself.
State and federal prosecutions can proceed in parallel because the two governments are separate sovereigns, and double jeopardy does not bar both. Federal prosecutors often take the lead, but dual prosecution does happen.
What Moves the Sentence Up or Down
Federal judges work from the Sentencing Guidelines. Murder-for-hire starts at a base offense level of 32, which already puts the recommended range well into double-digit years before any adjustments.7United States Sentencing Commission. USSG 2E1.4 – Use of Interstate Commerce Facilities in the Commission of Murder-for-Hire From there, aggravating and mitigating factors move the number.
Aggravators push the sentence higher. Prior violent felonies carry heavy weight. Financial motives, insurance killings, and plots aimed at silencing a witness in another case all signal heightened danger and bring enhancements. Detailed surveillance, repeated meetings, and elaborate payment arrangements show calculation. Targeting a child, an elderly person, or a public official is treated as a serious aggravating factor.
Mitigators pull it down, though the baseline is high enough that even meaningful reductions leave substantial prison time. A defendant who played a minor role in a larger conspiracy can receive a downward role adjustment.8United States Sentencing Commission. Aggravating and Mitigating Role Adjustments The single most powerful lever is cooperation. Substantial assistance to prosecutors, especially information that identifies co-conspirators, can support a government motion for a downward departure. The intended victim or their family can also file a victim impact statement that becomes part of the presentence report and can influence where in the range the judge lands.9United States Department of Justice. Victim Impact Statements
Money Owed After the Sentence
Prison and fines are not the end of it. Federal law requires judges to order restitution to victims of violent crimes, including murder-for-hire, and the judge has no discretion to waive it.10Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 18 US Code 3663A – Mandatory Restitution to Victims of Certain Crimes
If the target was injured, restitution covers medical care, rehabilitation, therapy, and lost income. If the target was killed, it includes funeral and related expenses. In every case, the defendant also reimburses the victim or family for costs tied to the investigation and prosecution, including transportation, childcare, and lost wages for attending court. A restitution order is not dischargeable in bankruptcy, so the financial obligation can outlast the prison term itself.