> ## 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 Northern District of Mississippi, FY2016–2025 - URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-northern-district-of-mississippi/ - Published: 2026-11-04T11:14:52.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-04T11:14:52.000Z - Description: Drug trafficking was 28% of the 1,573 people sentenced in the Northern District of Mississippi in fiscal years 2016 to 2025: 439 people. The median prison term was 60 months, the same as for all 94 districts. Sentences below the guideline range at the government's request were the largest group, at - 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 Northern District of Mississippi, F](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-northern-district-of-mississippi/) › Drug Trafficking: Northern District of Mississippi **In brief:** Drug trafficking was 28% of the 1,573 people sentenced in the Northern District of Mississippi in fiscal years 2016 to 2025: 439 people. The median prison term was 60 months, the same as for all 94 districts. Sentences below the guideline range at the government's request were the largest group, at 50%. 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 439 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/). ## A Large Share of the District's Cases The U.S. Sentencing Commission's offense type "Drug Trafficking" covered 439 of the 1,573 people sentenced in this district in fiscal years 2016 to 2025\. That is 28% of the district's cases. A fiscal year begins on October 1 and ends the next September. Nearly all of these cases used one guideline. §2D1.1 (Unlawful Manufacturing, Importing, Exporting, or Trafficking (Including Possession with Intent to Commit These Offenses)) was the primary guideline for 435 people. One person was sentenced under §2D1.2 (Drug Offenses Occurring Near Protected Locations or Involving Underage or Pregnant Individuals), and one under §2X3.1 (Accessory After the Fact). The district sentenced 183 people in this offense type in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 256 people in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. ## Prison Terms Compared With All Districts 397 of the 439 people (90%) received a prison term, and 36 (8%) received probation only. In all 94 districts, 96% of people in this offense type were sent to prison. Among those sent to prison, the median prison term was 60 months (5 years). A quarter received 110 months or more, and a quarter received 31 months or less. The median for all 94 districts was also 60 months. For all offenses in the Northern District of Mississippi, the median prison term was 36 months. Drug trafficking sentences had a higher median than the district as a whole. These are the terms imposed, not time served. ## Where Sentences Fell Against the Guideline Range The records show the sentence's position for 437 people. Sentences below the range at the government's request were the largest group, at 220 people (50%). Sentences within the range were given to 131 (30%), and sentences below the range without a government request to 80 (18%). Sentences above the range were given to 6 (1%). In all districts, 32% of sentences in this offense type were within the range. For all offenses in this district, the figure was 45%. A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 165 of the 439 people with that information recorded (38%). ## Pleas and the Few Trials 436 of 439 people (more than 99%) pleaded guilty, and 3 were convicted after a trial. For all districts, 98% pleaded guilty. The median prison term was 60 months after a guilty plea and 235 months after a trial. The trial figure rests on 3 people, so it is not a firm basis for comparison. Among the guilty pleas, more than 99% had a written plea agreement, and less than 1% were straight pleas with no agreement. ## Supervised Release, Fines, and Criminal History Supervised release after prison was ordered for 386 people (88%), with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 2 people (less than 1%) and restitution for 1 (less than 1%). In criminal history, 30% were in the lowest category, Category I, and 16% were in the highest, Category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field. ## Year-by-Year Medians Yearly counts range from 25 people in fiscal year 2021 to 68 in fiscal year 2019\. The yearly median prison term ranges from 48 months to 70 months. The table lists every year. The year-to-year changes in a median are small counts moving around and are not shown here to be a trend. | Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty | | ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- | | 2016 | 27 | 60 months | 100% | | 2017 | 46 | 48 months | 100% | | 2018 | 42 | 63 months | 98% | | 2019 | 68 | 48 months | 100% | | 2020 | 31 | 58.5 months | 100% | | 2021 | 25 | 60 months | 100% | | 2022 | 50 | 68 months | 98% | | 2023 | 54 | 54 months | 100% | | 2024 | 50 | 70 months | 98% | | 2025 | 46 | 70 months | 100% | ## Installations and Limits of the Records Columbus AFB, Mississippi, appears in this site's court-martial data and is in this district. Courts-martial are tried in military courts, not in this federal district court. The Commission's data counts only people who were convicted and sentenced. Acquittals and dismissals are not in it, and the records do not describe the facts of any case. ### How We Counted Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Northern District of Mississippi (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Mississippi North") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Drug Trafficking" (439). 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 Northern District of Mississippi, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-northern-district-of-mississippi/) (overview) - [Federal Firearms Sentences in the Northern District of Mississippi, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-northern-district-of-mississippi/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Northern District of Mississippi, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-northern-district-of-mississippi/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Obscenity and Other Sex Offense Sentences in the Northern District of Mississippi, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-obscenity-other-sex-offenses-sentences-northern-district-of-mississippi/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Child Pornography Sentences in the Northern District of Mississippi, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-child-pornography-sentences-northern-district-of-mississippi/) (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.