Methamphetamine Trafficking Offenses in the Federal Criminal Justice System -

The United States Sentencing Commission today released a new report examining trends in methamphetamine trafficking offenses and sentencing and the effects of increasing purity of methamphetamine over time.

June 16, 2024
Source: U. S. Sentencing Commission

Over the last 30 years methamphetamine has become the most prevalent drug in the federal criminal justice system. The Commission analyzed 20 years of sentencing data on methamphetamine offenses and conducted a special data collection project examining the purity of methamphetamine trafficked and offense conduct of individuals sentenced for trafficking methamphetamine in fiscal year 2022.

Highlights

Methamphetamine has been the predominant drug in the federal caseload since fiscal year 2014 and comprised approximately one-half of all drug trafficking offenses in fiscal year 2022.

The purity of the methamphetamine trafficked in the United States has substantially increased. Commission data finds that two-thirds of the methamphetamine tested in federal drug trafficking offenses is 96 percent pure.

The production of methamphetamine has shifted outside the United States and sentencing guideline enhancements targeted at domestic methamphetamine production and importation now rarely apply. Only ten individuals received an enhancement related to harm to persons or the environment in FY22.

Because the statutory and guideline penalties for methamphetamine are based in part on purity, sentences imposed are impacted by laboratory testing practices which vary across the nation.

Individuals sentenced for trafficking methamphetamine received average sentences of 91 months, the longest among all persons sentenced for a federal drug trafficking offense.

Individuals sentenced for trafficking methamphetamine were convicted of an offense carrying a mandatory minimum penalty more often than all other individuals sentenced for drug trafficking (74.2% compared to 56.6%).

Read the Report

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Levi Gwaltney

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