§2D1.11 Unlawfully Distributing, Importing, Exporting or Possessing a Listed Chemical: Federal Sentences, FY2016–2025
Of 180 people sentenced under §2D1.11 from fiscal year 2016 to fiscal year 2025, 171 (95%) received a prison term. The median prison term was 36 months. Most of the cases date from fiscal years 2016 to 2019.
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In brief: Of 180 people sentenced under §2D1.11 from fiscal year 2016 to fiscal year 2025, 171 (95%) received a prison term. The median prison term was 36 months. Most of the cases date from fiscal years 2016 to 2019.
This post uses the U.S. Sentencing Commission's records of 180 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.
Where the Cases Are Concentrated
168 of the 180 people were sentenced in fiscal years 2016 to 2019, and the median prison term in those years was 36 months. Only 12 people were sentenced in fiscal years 2020 to 2025, with a median of 24 months.
The yearly table makes the drop clear: 76 people in fiscal year 2016, then 1 person in each of fiscal years 2022, 2024, and 2025. With so few people after 2019, the later medians are not a reliable guide. The records cannot show why the count fell. Within fiscal years 2016 to 2019 the median also moved, from 41 months in fiscal year 2016 to 46 months in fiscal year 2017 and 24 months in fiscal year 2019.
| Fiscal year | People sentenced | Median prison | Pleaded guilty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 76 | 41 months | 100% |
| 2017 | 22 | 46 months | 95% |
| 2018 | 43 | 30 months | 100% |
| 2019 | 27 | 24 months | 100% |
| 2020 | 5 | 0 months | 4 of 5 |
| 2021 | 2 | 44 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2022 | 1 | 24 months | 1 of 1 |
| 2023 | 2 | 54.3 months | 2 of 2 |
| 2024 | 1 | 24 months | 1 of 1 |
| 2025 | 1 | 51 months | 1 of 1 |
What §2D1.11 Covers
The Manual title is "Unlawfully Distributing, Importing, Exporting or Possessing a Listed Chemical; Attempt or Conspiracy." Going by the title, it addresses dealing in or possessing chemicals on a list, including attempts and conspiracies.
Cases are counted here when this was the primary guideline, the one that set the offense level for the most serious count. The Commission's offense type for all 180 is Other. The approved crosswalk lists no close court-martial counterpart.
Prison and Probation
Prison was the usual sentence: 171 people (95%) received it, and 7 (4%) received probation only. The median prison term was 36 months, or 3 years.
A quarter received 63 months or more, and a quarter received 18 months or less.
Guilty Pleas
178 of 180 people (99%) pleaded guilty, and 2 were convicted after a trial. The median prison term after a guilty plea was 36 months. The 2 trial cases had a median of 103 months, but 2 people are too few to support a comparison.
Among guilty pleas, 84% had a written plea agreement and 16% had none.
Mandatory Minimums and the Guideline Range
A mandatory minimum prison term applied to 3 people (2%).
43% of sentences (78 people) were below the guideline range at the government's request, and 38% (69) were below it without such a request. 18% (33) were within the range. No sentence was above it.
Supervised Release and Other Terms
171 people (95%) were ordered to serve supervised release after prison, with a median term of 36 months. A fine was ordered for 25 (14%), and restitution for 6 (3%).
Criminal history ranged widely: 33% were in the lowest category and 9% were in the highest. Prison terms are the terms imposed, not time served.
What Cannot Be Learned Here
Only people who were convicted and sentenced are counted. The records do not show acquittals, dismissals, or the type or amount of chemical in any case.
How We Counted
Everyone sentenced in federal court in fiscal years 2016 to 2025 whose primary sentencing guideline was §2D1.11 (180), from the U.S. Sentencing Commission's individual data files. The primary guideline is the one that set the offense level for the most serious count.
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)
- §2D1.1 Unlawful Manufacturing, Importing, Exporting, or Trafficking (Including Possession with Intent to Commit These Offenses): Federal Sentences, FY2016–2025 (same guideline chapter part)
- §2D1.2 Drug Offenses Occurring Near Protected Locations or Involving Underage or Pregnant Individuals: Federal Sentences, FY2016–2025 (same guideline chapter part)
- §2D2.1 Unlawful Possession: Federal Sentences, FY2016–2025 (same guideline chapter part)
- §2D2.2 Acquiring a Controlled Substance by Forgery, Fraud, Deception, or Subterfuge: Federal Sentences, FY2016–2025 (same guideline chapter part)
- 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.