> ## 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 Puerto Rico, FY2016–2025 - URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-district-of-puerto-rico/ - Published: 2026-11-04T10:31:03.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-04T10:31:03.000Z - Description: Drug trafficking made up 48% of the 9,794 people sentenced in the District of Puerto Rico in fiscal years 2016 to 2025: 4,670 people. Of those, 4,534 (97%) received prison, and the median prison term was 70 months (5.8 years). A mandatory minimum applied to 4,089 of the 4,662 people with that inform - 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 Puerto Rico, FY2016–202](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-district-of-puerto-rico/) › Drug Trafficking: District of Puerto Rico **In brief:** Drug trafficking made up 48% of the 9,794 people sentenced in the District of Puerto Rico in fiscal years 2016 to 2025: 4,670 people. Of those, 4,534 (97%) received prison, and the median prison term was 70 months (5.8 years). A mandatory minimum applied to 4,089 of the 4,662 people with that information recorded (88%). 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 4,670 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/). ## Drug Trafficking Is 48% of the District's Cases The U.S. Sentencing Commission's offense type "Drug Trafficking" is the largest group in this district. It accounts for 4,670 of the 9,794 people sentenced in the period. In all 94 federal districts, 185,188 people were sentenced for drug trafficking. The median prison term for the district's drug trafficking cases, 70 months, is higher than the 60 months for the same offense type in all districts. The district's median for all offenses was also 60 months. ## Mandatory Minimums and Prison Terms Prison was ordered for 4,534 of the 4,670 people (97%), and 122 (3%) received probation only. In all districts, 96% were sent to prison. A quarter of those sent to prison received 97 months or more, and a quarter received 50.5 months or less. These are terms imposed, not time served. A mandatory minimum is a sentencing floor set by statute. It applied to 88% of the people with that information recorded. ## Which Guidelines Were Used The most common primary guideline was §2D1.1 (Unlawful Manufacturing, Importing, Exporting, or Trafficking (Including Possession with Intent to Commit These Offenses)), used for 2,948 people. Next was §2D1.2 (Drug Offenses Occurring Near Protected Locations or Involving Underage or Pregnant Individuals), used for 1,707. Under §2X3.1 (Accessory After the Fact), 4 people were sentenced. The Commission's data here do not say which drugs were involved. ## Within the Guideline Range More Often Than Nationally Of the 4,670 people, 2,232 (48%) were sentenced within the guideline range. Below the range at the government's request were 1,329 (28%), and below it without a government request were 819 (18%). Above the range were 290 (6%). For all districts, 32% of drug trafficking cases were within the range. For all offenses in this district, the share was 54%. The records do not show the reasons for any single sentence. ## Almost All Pleaded Guilty Guilty pleas were entered by 4,613 of 4,670 people (99%), and 57 were convicted after a trial. The share for all districts was 98%. The median prison term was 70 months after a guilty plea and 121 months after a trial, based on 57 people. The records do not describe how those groups of cases differed. Of the guilty pleas, 92% had a written plea agreement and 8% were straight pleas. ## Supervised Release and Criminal History Supervised release after prison was ordered for 4,516 people (97%), with a median term of 60 months. A fine was ordered for 16 (less than 1%), and restitution for 11 (less than 1%). On criminal history, 74% were in category I, the lowest, and 1% were in category VI, the highest. Court-martial records have no criminal history field. ## Counts by Fiscal Year The district sentenced 1,686 people for drug trafficking in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 2,984 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025\. The fiscal year runs from October 1 to the end of September. Yearly counts range from 285 in 2018 to 653 in 2024\. Yearly medians range from 64.5 months to 76.4 months. The table shows every year. | Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty | | ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- | | 2016 | 510 | 67.5 months | more than 99% | | 2017 | 397 | 64.5 months | 96% | | 2018 | 285 | 70.7 months | 98% | | 2019 | 494 | 70 months | 98% | | 2020 | 435 | 70 months | 98% | | 2021 | 446 | 66 months | 99% | | 2022 | 398 | 70 months | more than 99% | | 2023 | 585 | 76.4 months | more than 99% | | 2024 | 653 | 72 months | more than 99% | | 2025 | 467 | 70 months | more than 99% | ## What the Records Do Not Show Only people who were convicted and sentenced are counted. Acquittals and dismissals are not in the data. These figures describe federal court cases only. Courts-martial are tried in military courts, not in this district court. ### How We Counted Everyone sentenced in federal court in the District of Puerto Rico (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Puerto Rico") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Drug Trafficking" (4,670). 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 Puerto Rico, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-district-of-puerto-rico/) (overview) - [Federal Firearms Sentences in the District of Puerto Rico, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-district-of-puerto-rico/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the District of Puerto Rico, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-immigration-sentences-district-of-puerto-rico/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the District of Puerto Rico, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-district-of-puerto-rico/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Robbery Sentences in the District of Puerto Rico, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-robbery-sentences-district-of-puerto-rico/) (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.