> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.bodiesburied.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of Kansas, FY2016–2025 - URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-district-of-kansas/ - Published: 2026-11-04T11:09:57.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-04T11:09:57.000Z - Description: Drug trafficking made up 34% of the 4,217 people sentenced in the District of Kansas in fiscal years 2016 to 2025: 1,417 people. The median prison term was 70 months, compared with 60 months for drug trafficking in all 94 federal districts. For 56%, the sentence was below the guideline range at the - 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 District of Kansas, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-district-of-kansas/) › Drug Trafficking: District of Kansas **In brief:** Drug trafficking made up 34% of the 4,217 people sentenced in the District of Kansas in fiscal years 2016 to 2025: 1,417 people. The median prison term was 70 months, compared with 60 months for drug trafficking in all 94 federal districts. For 56%, the sentence was below the guideline range at the government's request. 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 1,417 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/). ## The Largest Offense Type in the District With 1,417 people, drug trafficking was the single biggest group of sentences in the district. It accounted for 34% of the 4,217 total. Within this category, 1,396 people were sentenced under §2D1.1 (Unlawful Manufacturing, Importing, Exporting, or Trafficking (Including Possession with Intent to Commit These Offenses)). 9 were sentenced under §2D1.2 (Drug Offenses Occurring Near Protected Locations or Involving Underage or Pregnant Individuals). 3 each were sentenced under §2X3.1 (Accessory After the Fact) and §2D1.8 (Renting or Managing a Drug Establishment). The category is the U.S. Sentencing Commission's offense type, and each person is placed in it by the primary guideline. ## Requests by the Government for Lower Sentences The guideline range was recorded for 1,415 people. A sentence below the range at the government's request applied to 56% (798). Within the range were 29% (413), below the range without a government request were 12% (169), and above the range were 2% (35). In all districts, 32% of drug trafficking sentences were within the range, so that share was lower here. ## Prison Terms and Mandatory Minimums A total of 1,338 people (94%) received prison, and 77 (5%) received probation only. The median prison term was 70 months (5.8 years). A quarter received 120 months or more, and a quarter received 46 months or less. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 720 of the 1,416 people with that information recorded (51%). 3 people received a life sentence. The district's median for all offense types was 46 months, so drug trafficking terms were longer than the district's cases overall. ## Guilty Pleas Were Nearly Universal Guilty pleas accounted for 1,385 of 1,417 people (98%), and 32 were convicted after a trial. The median after a guilty plea was 70 months. After a trial it was 240 months, based on 32 people. Among the guilty pleas, 98% had a written plea agreement and 2% were straight pleas with no agreement. ## Supervised Release, Fines, and Criminal History Supervised release followed prison for 1,308 people (92%), with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 16 people (1%), and restitution for 13 (less than 1%). The lowest criminal history category, category I, applied to 42% of people. The highest, category VI, applied to 10%. ## Yearly Counts The district sentenced 642 people in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 775 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025\. The fiscal year ends in September, so each row covers October through the following September. The yearly median ranged from 60 months to 84 months. The table shows the counts for each year. | Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty | | ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- | | 2016 | 172 | 60 months | 95% | | 2017 | 181 | 60 months | 98% | | 2018 | 150 | 60 months | 98% | | 2019 | 139 | 72 months | more than 99% | | 2020 | 106 | 78 months | 94% | | 2021 | 142 | 72 months | 99% | | 2022 | 161 | 60 months | 98% | | 2023 | 109 | 72 months | more than 99% | | 2024 | 108 | 84 months | more than 99% | | 2025 | 149 | 77 months | 99% | ## Military Installations and Limits of the Data Fort Leavenworth, Fort Riley, and McConnell AFB are in the District of Kansas. Courts-martial are tried in military courts, not in this federal district court, and these numbers describe federal civilian cases only. The data covers only people who were convicted and sentenced, so dismissed cases and acquittals are missing. Prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served. ### How We Counted Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of Kansas (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Kansas") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Drug Trafficking" (1,417). 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 District of Kansas, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-district-of-kansas/) (overview) - [Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of Kansas, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-district-of-kansas/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of Kansas, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-district-of-kansas/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the District of Kansas, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-immigration-sentences-district-of-kansas/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Robbery Sentences in the District of Kansas, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-robbery-sentences-district-of-kansas/) (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.