Federal Drug Trafficking Sentences in the Southern District of West Virginia, FY2016–2025
Drug trafficking cases were 52% of the 2,416 people sentenced in the Southern District of West Virginia in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Of the 1,255 people sentenced for drug trafficking, 1,192 (95%) received a prison term, and the median was 60 months (5 years). That median is the same as the median
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In brief: Drug trafficking cases were 52% of the 2,416 people sentenced in the Southern District of West Virginia in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Of the 1,255 people sentenced for drug trafficking, 1,192 (95%) received a prison term, and the median was 60 months (5 years). That median is the same as the median for all 94 districts.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 1,255 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 Is the Largest Part of This District's Caseload
The Sentencing Commission counts 2,416 people sentenced in this district in fiscal years 2016 to 2025. Of those, 1,255 were in the offense type "Drug Trafficking," which is the Commission's category and not a legal charge. The district's median prison term for all offenses is 42 months, which is lower than the 60 months for drug trafficking.
The primary guideline was §2D1.1 (Unlawful Manufacturing, Importing, Exporting, or Trafficking (Including Possession with Intent to Commit These Offenses)) for 1,240 people. The remaining cases used §2D1.2 (Drug Offenses Occurring Near Protected Locations or Involving Underage or Pregnant Individuals) for 5 people and §2D1.8 (Renting or Managing a Drug Establishment) for 2 people.
Prison Terms and Probation
Of the 1,255 people, 1,192 (95%) received a prison term, and 39 (3%) received probation only, with no prison or other confinement. Among those sent to prison, a quarter received 96 months or more, and a quarter received 30 months or less. Prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served.
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 413 of the 1,247 people with that information recorded (33%). Supervised release after prison was ordered for 1,185 people (94%), with a median term of 36 months.
Almost Everyone Pleaded Guilty
Of the 1,255 people, 1,235 (98%) pleaded guilty and 20 were convicted after a trial. The median prison term was 60 months after a guilty plea and 168 months after a trial. The trial figure is based on 18 people convicted at trial and sent to prison.
Among guilty pleas, 90% had a written plea agreement and 10% were straight pleas with no agreement. The 98% guilty plea rate matches the 98% for all districts in this offense type, and it is higher than the 97% for all offenses in this district.
Sentences Against the Guideline Range
The guideline range is the range the federal guidelines calculate for each case. Of 1,248 sentences with the information, 559 (45%) were within the range. Another 542 (43%) were below the range without a government request, and 120 (10%) were below the range at the government's request. Only 27 (2%) were above the range.
Within-range sentences were more common in this offense type here than the 32% for all districts. They were less common than the 51% for all offenses in this district.
Year-by-Year Medians
The district sentenced 544 people for drug trafficking in fiscal years 2016 to 2019 and 711 in fiscal years 2020 to 2025. Yearly counts in the table range from 92 to 163 people. The median prison term was 30 months in 2016 and 78 months in 2025, and the table shows the years in between.
The records cannot show why medians changed from year to year. The table does not show drug type, drug quantity, or role in the offense.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 135 | 30 months | more than 99% |
| 2017 | 131 | 46 months | 100% |
| 2018 | 115 | 64 months | 98% |
| 2019 | 163 | 48 months | 98% |
| 2020 | 142 | 60 months | more than 99% |
| 2021 | 123 | 63 months | 96% |
| 2022 | 136 | 60 months | 99% |
| 2023 | 96 | 60 months | 97% |
| 2024 | 122 | 72.5 months | more than 99% |
| 2025 | 92 | 78 months | 98% |
Fines, Restitution, Criminal History, and Limits
A fine was ordered for 20 people (2%), and restitution for 5 (less than 1%). In criminal history, 30% were in the lowest category, category I, and 13% were in the highest, category VI. Court-martial records have no criminal history field.
The Commission counts only people who were convicted and sentenced. Acquittals and dismissals are not in the data, so the records cannot show how many drug trafficking prosecutions ended without a conviction.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in the Southern District of West Virginia (U.S. Sentencing Commission district label "W Virginia South") in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose offense type was "Drug Trafficking" (1,255). 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 Southern District of West Virginia, FY2016–2025 (overview)
- Federal Firearms Sentences in the Southern District of West Virginia, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Fraud, Theft, and Embezzlement Sentences in the Southern District of West Virginia, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Prison Offense Sentences in the Southern District of West Virginia, FY2016–2025 (same district, other offense type)
- Federal Sexual Abuse Sentences in the Southern District of West Virginia, 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.