> ## 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 Southern District of Illinois, FY2016–2025 - URL: https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-drug-trafficking-sentences-southern-district-of-illinois/ - Published: 2026-11-04T11:15:56.000Z - Updated: 2026-11-04T11:15:56.000Z - Description: Drug trafficking was the largest offense type in the Southern District of Illinois: 1,033 of the 2,576 people sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, or 40%. The median prison term was 108 months (9 years), compared with 60 months for this offense type in all 94 federal districts together. 99% of th - 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 Southern District of Illinois, FY20](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-southern-district-of-illinois/) › Drug Trafficking: Southern District of Illinois **In brief:** Drug trafficking was the largest offense type in the Southern District of Illinois: 1,033 of the 2,576 people sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2025, or 40%. The median prison term was 108 months (9 years), compared with 60 months for this offense type in all 94 federal districts together. 99% of the people sentenced had pleaded guilty. 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 1,033 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 Share of the District's Cases Drug trafficking cases made up 40% of everyone sentenced in this district in fiscal years 2016 to 2025\. All other offense types in the district were smaller. The U.S. Sentencing Commission assigns each case to one offense type, and this post uses the type it calls "Drug Trafficking". Fiscal years 2016 to 2019 account for 433 of the people, and fiscal years 2020 to 2025 account for 600\. The yearly table below gives the count for each year. ## Prison Terms Compared With All Districts 1,003 of the 1,033 people (97%) received a prison term, and 23 (2%) received probation only. 1 person received a life sentence. Among those sent to prison, the median prison term was 108 months. A quarter received 151 months or more, and a quarter received 60 months or less. The median for all offenses in this district was 71 months, and the median for drug trafficking across all districts was 60 months. The Commission records the term imposed, not the time served. | Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty | | ----------- | ---------------- | ------------- | -------------- | | 2016 | 137 | 84 months | 99% | | 2017 | 96 | 108 months | 100% | | 2018 | 106 | 120 months | more than 99% | | 2019 | 94 | 120 months | 99% | | 2020 | 107 | 120 months | more than 99% | | 2021 | 77 | 96 months | 100% | | 2022 | 109 | 108 months | more than 99% | | 2023 | 121 | 100 months | 98% | | 2024 | 94 | 100 months | 98% | | 2025 | 92 | 99 months | 98% | ## Mandatory Minimums and the Guideline Range A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 672 of the 1,033 people (65%). That is a large share, and it bears on how much room a judge had to go below the guideline range. 555 sentences (54%) were within the guideline range. 246 (24%) were below the range at the government's request, and 215 (21%) were below it without that request. 17 (2%) were above the range. In all districts, 32% of drug trafficking sentences were within the range. In this district, the share for all offense types was 55%. ## Pleas and the Few Trials 1,021 people (99%) pleaded guilty, and 12 were convicted after a trial. The median prison term after a guilty plea was 108 months. The median after a trial was 222.5 months, based on only 12 people. Among the guilty pleas, 69% had a written plea agreement and 31% were straight pleas with no agreement. The Commission's data includes only people who were convicted and sentenced, so acquittals and dismissals are not part of these percentages. ## Guidelines, Criminal History, and Conditions After Prison The primary guideline was §2D1.1 (Unlawful Manufacturing, Importing, Exporting, or Trafficking (Including Possession with Intent to Commit These Offenses)) for 1,027 people. §2D1.2 applied to 3, §2X3.1 (Accessory After the Fact) to 2, and §2D1.8 (Renting or Managing a Drug Establishment) to 1. 27% of the people were in the lowest criminal history category, category I, and 20% were in the highest, category VI. 992 people (96%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, with a median term of 48 months. A fine was ordered for 749 (73%), and restitution for 7 (less than 1%). ## What the Records Leave Out The records do not show which drug was involved, the quantity, or the facts of any case. They also do not explain why this district's median differs from the all-district median. Scott AFB, Illinois, is the installation in this district that appears in this site's court-martial data. Courts-martial are tried in military courts, not in this federal district court, so these numbers describe federal cases only. ### How We Counted Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Southern District of Illinois (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "Illinois South") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Drug Trafficking" (1,033). 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 Southern District of Illinois, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-district-southern-district-of-illinois/) (overview) - [Federal Firearms Sentences in the Southern District of Illinois, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-firearms-sentences-southern-district-of-illinois/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Southern District of Illinois, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-fraud-theft-embezzlement-sentences-southern-district-of-illinois/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Sexual Abuse Sentences in the Southern District of Illinois, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-sexual-abuse-sentences-southern-district-of-illinois/) (same district, other offense type) - [Federal Immigration Offense Sentences in the Southern District of Illinois, FY2016–2025](https://www.bodiesburied.com/trends/federal-immigration-sentences-southern-district-of-illinois/) (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.