Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the District of New Hampshire, FY2016–2025
Drug trafficking was 47% of the 1,754 people sentenced in federal court in the District of New Hampshire in fiscal years 2016 to 2025: 825 people. The median prison term was 46 months (3.8 years), lower than the 60 months across all 94 districts, and 54% of sentences were below the guideline range a
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Trends › Federal Prosecution Analysis › Federal Sentences in the District of New Hampshire, FY2016–2 › Drug Trafficking: District of New Hampshire
In brief: Drug trafficking was 47% of the 1,754 people sentenced in federal court in the District of New Hampshire in fiscal years 2016 to 2025: 825 people. The median prison term was 46 months (3.8 years), lower than the 60 months across all 94 districts, and 54% of sentences were below the guideline range at the government's request.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 825 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 series, which builds on Military Moves Toward Sentencing Guidelines to Mirror the Federal System. How the numbers were built: How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built.
Drug Trafficking as 47% of the District's Cases
The U.S. Sentencing Commission counted 825 people whose offense type was "Drug Trafficking." That was 47% of everyone sentenced in this district in the period.
In all, 785 of the 825 (95%) received a prison term, and 34 (4%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement. The median prison term was 46 months. A quarter received 72 months or more, and a quarter received 18 months or less.
Compared With the Country and the District
Across all districts, 185,188 people were sentenced for drug trafficking, 96% were sent to prison, and the median prison term was 60 months. The median in New Hampshire was lower.
The district's median for all offenses was 30 months. The median for drug trafficking was therefore higher than that for the district's cases as a whole.
Guideline Range and Mandatory Minimums
Only 143 sentences (17%) were within the guideline range. A sentence below the range at the government's request was recorded for 448 people (54%), and below the range without a government request for 217 (26%). It was above the range for 17 (2%).
Across all districts, 32% of drug trafficking sentences were within the range, and for all offenses in this district the share was 31%. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 343 of the 824 people with that information recorded (42%).
Which Guidelines Applied
The offense type is the Commission's category. For 818 people, the primary guideline was §2D1.1 (Unlawful Manufacturing, Importing, Exporting, or Trafficking (Including Possession with Intent to Commit These Offenses)).
Smaller groups were sentenced under §2D1.2 (Drug Offenses Occurring Near Protected Locations or Involving Underage or Pregnant Individuals) with 3 people, §2D1.5 (Continuing Criminal Enterprise) with 2 people, and §2X3.1 (Accessory After the Fact) with 2 people.
Pleas and Trials
In all, 813 of 825 people (99%) pleaded guilty, and 12 were convicted after a trial. The median prison term was 46 months after a guilty plea and 100 months after a trial, based on 12 people. Of the guilty pleas, 98% had a written plea agreement and 2% were straight pleas.
The records show the sentences but not what was negotiated or why.
Supervised Release, Fines, and Criminal History
Supervised release after prison was ordered for 767 people (93%), with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 20 people (2%), and restitution for 3 (less than 1%).
In criminal history, 38% were in the lowest category and 16% were in the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
Yearly Counts and Limits
Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 account for 274 people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 account for 551 people. In the yearly table, the median was 56 to 60 months from fiscal years 2016 to 2019, and it was between 32.5 and 45.5 months from fiscal years 2020 to 2025. The records do not show whether anything caused that change. The fiscal year runs from October through September.
Acquittals and dismissals are not in the data, and prison terms are terms imposed, not time served.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 45 | 60 months | 91% |
| 2017 | 62 | 56 months | 100% |
| 2018 | 80 | 60 months | 98% |
| 2019 | 87 | 60 months | 100% |
| 2020 | 117 | 39 months | 97% |
| 2021 | 118 | 32.5 months | more than 99% |
| 2022 | 114 | 43 months | more than 99% |
| 2023 | 80 | 36 months | 99% |
| 2024 | 54 | 37 months | 100% |
| 2025 | 68 | 45.5 months | 100% |
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of New Hampshire (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "New Hampshire") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Drug Trafficking" (825). 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 (the background article)
- Federal Prosecution Analysis (all federal posts)
- How the Federal Comparison Data Was Built (sources and method)
- Federal Sentences in the District of New Hampshire, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of New Hampshire, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the District of New Hampshire, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of New Hampshire, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Child Pornography Sentences in the District of New Hampshire, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- U.S. Sentencing Commission, Individual Offender Datafiles (source)
- Federal Judicial Center, Integrated Database (criminal defendants) (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. This analysis is for education and information only. It is not legal advice, and every case is different.