Federal mandatory drug sentences
The laws
- Mandatory sentencing laws require lengthy, predetermined prison terms for those convicted of certain crimes, most often drug offenses.
- The weight and type of drug, location of a sale, prior record or the presence of a firearm during a felony usually determine mandatory minimum sentences.
- Congress enacted mandatory drug laws in 1986 and 1988 in the belief that harsh punishment would reduce crime and that mandatory laws would assure that all criminals were sentenced equally. It thought the laws targeted drug "kingpins" and would deter others from using or selling drugs.
- Federal mandatory drug sentences for first-time drug offenders:
Type of drug 5-year sentence1 10-year sentence1
LSD 1 gram2 10 grams
Marijuana 100 plants or 100 kilos3 1,000 plants or 1,000 kilos
Crack cocaine 5 grams 50 grams
Powder cocaine 500 grams 5 kilos
Heroin 100 grams 1 kilo
Methamphetamine4 5 grams 50 grams
PCP 10 grams 100 grams
1 There is no parole in the federal system
2 A gram is roughly equal to a single packet of sweetener.
3 A kilo is equal to 2.2 lbs.
4 For pure methamphetamine.
- Federal sentencing laws include five-year sentences for a first gun conviction (second and third convictions bring 25 years each, served consecutively).
- A 1994 "safety valve" for first-time, nonviolent offenders who meet specific criteria that allows one out of four federal drug offenders - 5,500 each year - to be sentenced under the more flexible sentencing guidelines rather than mandatory minimum laws.
Effects of mandatory sentences
- Judges can no longer consider the facts of each case. Only the weight and type of drug or the presence of a firearm determine the length of a sentence. The circumstances of the case, the role of the offender and the likelihood of rehabilitation cannot lower a mandatory minimum sentence.
- Judges no longer determine sentences. Control over sentencing shifts to prosecutors, who decide whether an offender gets charged in a way to trigger a mandatory sentence, whether the case goes to state or federal court and whether the defendant has provided enough useful information to be given a reduced sentence.
- "Drug kingpins" rarely receive mandatory minimums. Those with the most involvement, thus the most information, are more likely to receive reduced sentences than low-level offenders, couriers, or addicts who often have no information to trade for a sentence reduction. (U.S. Sentencing Commission, Cocaine and Federal Sentencing Policy, 1995, p. 172)
- Most federal drug offenders are neither kingpins or violent. Nearly nine out of 10 federal drug offenders are low- or medium-level participants in the drug trade. In addition, nearly 90 percent of federal drug offenders are nonviolent, with many receiving mandatory minimums of five or 10 years or more, without regard for their role in the offense. (U.S. Sentencing Commission, Cocaine and Federal Sentencing Policy, 1995, p. 172; U.S. Sentencing Commission Datafile 2002)
- People of color serve more mandatory sentences. African Americans account for 13 percent of the general population, yet in 2003 they comprised 27.2 percent of those receiving federal mandatory drug sentences. Hispanics constituted 12.5 percent of the general population but received 43 percent of the drug mandatory sentences. (U.S. Sentencing Commission Sourcebook, 2003; U.S. Census Bureau)
Problems with mandatory drug laws
- Harsher drug laws don't deter drug use. In 23 of 26 states with data available, the connection between drug commitment rates to prison and the percent of those using drugs is associated - states with higher rates of drug incarceration have higher rates of drug use. (Poor Prescription: The Costs of Imprisoning Drug Offenders in the United States, Justice Policy Institute, 2000)
- Some 76 percent of the offenders in the sample of a recent study and 89 percent of the most violent offenders were not aware of either the possibility of apprehension or the probable punishments for their crimes. ("The Deterrence Hypothesis and Picking Pockets at the Pickpocket's Hanging," by David A. Anderson, American Law and Economics Review, Fall 2002)
- Mandatory drug laws are the least cost-effective means of reducing drug use and sales. Treatment of heavy users is eight to nine times more cost-effective than long sentences in removing cocaine from the market, and conventional enforcement is twice as cost-effective. ("Mandatory Minimum Drug Sentencing: Throwing Away the Key or the Taxpayers' Money," Washington, D.C.,RAND Corporation Drug Policy Research Center, 1997)
- Mandatory sentences adversely impact federal budgets. The number of prisoners serving drug sentences - many of them mandatory sentences - increased from 24.9 percent in 1980 to a peak of 61.3 percent in 1994. During the same period, federal prison operating costs rose from $319 million to $1.9 billion, or 242 percent based on constant dollars. The 2005 annual federal prison budget is $4.7 billion, and it costs more than $23,100 per year to incarcerate a federal prisoner. (Federal and State Prisons: Inmate Populations, Costs and Projection Models," GAO, 1996; Bureau of Prisons, 2004)
- Public support for mandatory drug laws has waned. Only 38 percent support mandatory sentencing laws, down from 55 percent in 1995. (Peter D. Hart Research, 2002)
updated 3/06