Key Findings

• Methamphetamine has been the predominant drug in the federal caseload since fiscal year 2014 and comprised approximately one-half (48.7%; n=9,555) of all drug trafficking offenses in fiscal year 2022.
   
• In fiscal year 2022, individuals sentenced for trafficking methamphetamine received average sentences of 91 months, the longest among all persons sentenced for a federal drug trafficking offense.
  • Methamphetamine trafficking was more severely sentenced than crack cocaine (70 months), heroin (66 months), or fentanyl trafficking (65 months).
  • 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%). However, they received relief from mandatory minimum penalties at similar rates (54.7% and 58.4%, respectively).
• Methamphetamine is highly and uniformly pure.
  • The methamphetamine tested in fiscal year 2022 was on average over 90 percent pure (93.2%) with a median purity of 98.0 percent.
  • The methamphetamine tested in fiscal year 2022 was uniformly highly pure regardless of whether it was sentenced as methamphetamine mixture (91.0% pure on average), methamphetamine actual (92.6%), or Ice (97.6%).
• 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 mixture received shorter average sentences (83 months) than individuals sentenced for trafficking methamphetamine actual (93 months) or Ice (103 months).
  • Laboratory testing to determine purity was performed in three-quarters (75.6%) of the methamphetamine offenses in this study and varied geographically.
  • Border districts had higher rates of drug testing (86.4%) compared to non-border districts (71.2%).
  • Testing also varied by judicial circuit. More than 85 percent (85.6%) of methamphetamine offenses sentenced in the Ninth Circuit involved laboratory testing, compared to 58.0 percent of methamphetamine offenses sentenced in the Seventh Circuit.
• Sentencing guideline enhancements targeted at domestic methamphetamine production rarely apply, as the production of the drug has shifted outside the United States.
  • In fiscal year 2022, only ten individuals received an enhancement related to harm to persons or the environment.
  • This study identified only 19 methamphetamine laboratories, used solely to convert liquid methamphetamine into a crystal form.
• Sentencing guideline adjustments related to the individual’s role in the offense have a greater impact in methamphetamine offenses compared to all other drug trafficking offenses.
  • A greater percentage of individuals sentenced for methamphetamine trafficking received a mitigating role adjustment under §3B1.2 for having minimal or minor participation in the drug offense (23.5%) compared to those trafficking other drugs (17.0%).
  • Nearly thirty percent (27.2%) of individuals who trafficked methamphetamine actual received a mitigating role adjustment, more than individuals who trafficked either methamphetamine mixture (19.7%) or Ice (18.3%).