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# Federal Drug Possession Sentences in the Middle District of Georgia, FY2016–2025
- URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-possession-sentences-middle-district-of-georgia/
- Published: 2026-11-04T11:03:28.000Z
- Updated: 2026-11-04T11:03:28.000Z
- Description: Most people sentenced for drug possession in the Middle District of Georgia received probation only. Of 51 people sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 32 (63%) received probation only and 19 (37%) received a prison term, with a median of 2.6 months. Across all 94 federal districts, 68% of people
- Author: Jocelyn C. Stewart
- Tags: Understanding Trends, Federal

[Trends](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/) › [Federal Prosecution Analysis](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) › [Federal Sentences in the Middle District of Georgia, FY2016–](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-middle-district-of-georgia/) › Drug Possession: Middle District of Georgia

**In brief:** Most people sentenced for drug possession in the Middle District of Georgia received probation only. Of 51 people sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, 32 (63%) received probation only and 19 (37%) received a prison term, with a median of 2.6 months. Across all 94 federal districts, 68% of people in this offense type were sent to prison.

Updated November 4, 2026 · Sources: U.S. Sentencing Commission and Federal Judicial Center, fiscal years 2016–2025

This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 51 people sentenced in federal court in fiscal years 2016 to 2025\. Acquittals and dismissals come from a second source, the Federal Judicial Center's records of 753,808 federal defendants whose cases ended in fiscal years 2016 to 2025\. It is part of the [Federal Prosecution Analysis](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) series, which builds on [Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/military-sentencing-guidelines-federal-system/). How the numbers were built: [How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-data-methodology/).

## Probation Only Was the Most Common Result

The Sentencing Commission's "Drug Possession" offense type covers simple possession, not trafficking. In this district, 51 people were sentenced in that category over fiscal years 2016 to 2025\. 32 of them (63%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement.

The other 19 (37%) received a prison term. Among them, the median was 2.6 months. A quarter received 8 months or more, and a quarter received 0 months or less. Prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served.

## How This Compares With All Districts

Nationally, 5,909 people were sentenced in this offense type. 68% were sent to prison, and the median prison term was 6 months. The share sent to prison in this district was lower than the national share, and the median term was shorter.

Guilty pleas were more than 99% nationally and 96% here. Sentences were within the guideline range for 90% of people nationally and for 89% here.

These cases were 1% of the 4,094 people sentenced in the district. The district's median prison term across all offenses was 51 months.

## The Main Guideline Was Unlawful Possession

The primary guideline was §2D2.1 (Unlawful Possession) for 41 of the 51 people.

A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 6 of the 41 people with that information recorded (15%). Supervised release after prison was ordered for 11 people (22%), with a median term of 12 months.

## Pleas and Trials

49 of the 51 people (96%) pleaded guilty, and 2 were convicted after a trial. The median prison term was 1.8 months after a guilty plea. After a trial it was 27.9 months, but that figure rests on 1 person, so it cannot be compared with the plea group.

Among guilty pleas, 61% had a written plea agreement and 37% were straight pleas with no agreement.

## Position Against the Guideline Range

Information on the range was available for 46 people. 89% (41) were within the range. 4% (2) were below the range at the government's request, and 2% (1) were below the range without a government request. 4% (2) were above the range.

For all offenses in the district, 66% of sentences were within the range. Drug possession sentences were within the range more often than that.

## Fines and Criminal History

A fine was ordered for 19 people (37%). No restitution was ordered. In criminal history, 52% were in category I, the lowest, and 9% were in category VI, the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.

## Fiscal Year Counts Are Very Small

The district sentenced 28 people in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 23 people in fiscal years 2020 to 2025\. The table has no rows for fiscal year 2024, and some years had 1 to 3 people.

Yearly medians ranged from 0 months to 19.9 months, and fiscal years 2021 and 2025 have no median. With counts this small, the table shows the spread of values and not a trend. A fiscal year runs from October 1 to the end of the following September.

| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
| ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- |
| 2016        | 5                | 0 months      | 5 of 5         |
| 2017        | 15               | 0.6 months    | 100%           |
| 2018        | 5                | 0.7 months    | 5 of 5         |
| 2019        | 3                | 4 months      | 3 of 3         |
| 2020        | 7                | 8 months      | 7 of 7         |
| 2021        | 5                | n/a           | 5 of 5         |
| 2022        | 8                | 19.9 months   | 7 of 8         |
| 2023        | 2                | 0 months      | 1 of 2         |
| 2025        | 1                | n/a           | 1 of 1         |

## What the Records Cannot Show

The Commission counts only people who were convicted and sentenced. Acquittals and dismissals are not in the data. The records also cannot show why a case ended in probation instead of prison.

Fort Benning, Moody AFB, and Robins AFB are in this district. Courts-martial are tried in military courts, not in this federal district court.

### How We Counted

Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Middle District of Georgia (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Georgia Mid") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Drug Possession" (51). Offense types are the Commission's OFFGUIDE categories.

Federal fiscal years run from October 1 to September 30\. No person, judge, or lawyer is identified in any of these records.

### What to Keep in Mind

**No parole in federal prison; credit for good conduct.** Federal prison has no parole for crimes committed on or after November 1, 1987\. A federal prisoner can earn up to 54 days of good conduct credit for each year of the sentence the judge imposed, which is about 15%. Some federal prisoners can also earn First Step Act time credits, but many offenses make a person ineligible. The numbers in this post are the sentences judges imposed, not the time people actually served.

**Federal supervised release.** Most federal prison sentences are followed by a term of supervised release that the judge sets as part of the sentence. A person who violates it can be sent back to prison. A court-martial cannot sentence anyone to supervision after release. Military parole and mandatory supervised release are decided later by a board, not by the judge at trial.

**Who decides the sentence, and under what rules.** Federal judges sentence every federal case. They must calculate the Sentencing Guidelines range, which is advisory, and must impose any mandatory minimum the statute requires unless an exception applies. In courts-martial, the accused could choose sentencing by members until the rules changed. For cases in which every guilty finding is for an offense committed after December 27, 2023, a military judge sentences alone, within sentencing parameters. Courts-martial tried in 2024 and later include both old-rule and new-rule cases, and the data cannot tell them apart.

**Time periods.** Federal numbers are by federal fiscal year (October 1 to September 30), based on the sentencing date. The military numbers are by trial date. Neither source has the date of the offense, so a change in law shows up in either data set gradually.

**How life sentences and "time served" are counted.** In the federal numbers, a life sentence is counted as 470 months, and any other sentence longer than 470 months is counted as just under 470 months. A sentence of "time served" is counted as one day (0.03 months). Averages are affected by these rules; medians much less.

**Mandatory minimum sentences.** Many federal statutes on drugs, images of child exploitation, child sex abuse, and firearms carry mandatory minimum prison terms. The UCMJ has mandatory minimums only for a few offenses (a dishonorable discharge or dismissal for rape and sexual assault, and life for premeditated murder). Federal sentences for these offenses are partly set by Congress, not by the judge.

## Related Analysis

- [Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/military-sentencing-guidelines-federal-system/) (the background article)
- [Federal Prosecution Analysis](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal/) (all federal posts)
- [How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-data-methodology/) (sources and method)
- [Federal Sentences in the Middle District of Georgia, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-middle-district-of-georgia/) (overview)
- [Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Middle District of Georgia, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-middle-district-of-georgia/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Firearms Sentences in the Middle District of Georgia, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-middle-district-of-georgia/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Other Offense Sentences in the Middle District of Georgia, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-other-sentences-middle-district-of-georgia/) (same district, other offense type)
- [Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Middle District of Georgia, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-middle-district-of-georgia/) (same district, other offense type)
- [U.S. Sentencing Commission, Individual Offender Datafiles](https://www.ussc.gov/research/datafiles/commission-datafiles?ref=bodiesburied.com) (source)
- [Federal Judicial Center, Integrated Database (criminal defendants)](https://www.fjc.gov/research/idb?ref=bodiesburied.com) (source)

**About the author.** Jocelyn C. Stewart is a retired Army JAG with more than 24 years of trying courts-martial and more than 200 jury trials. She hosts *Where All The Bodies Are Buried* and runs the [Law Office of Jocelyn C. Stewart](https://www.ucmj-defender.com/?ref=bodiesburied.com). This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.