Drug trafficking and drug conspiracy charges

What does the law make illegal?

Trafficking, 21 U.S.C. § 841

It is a federal crime to knowingly or intentionally make, distribute or dispense a controlled substance, or to possess one with intent to distribute it (21 U.S.C. § 841(a)(1)). "Distribute" includes selling, delivering or handing drugs to someone else, even for free. A "controlled substance" is a drug listed in the federal schedules (21 U.S.C. § 812). The list includes heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine, fentanyl, marijuana and many prescription pills such as oxycodone.

Possession with intent to distribute is often proved by what surrounds the drugs: the amount, packaging, scales, cash, phone messages or ledgers. The drugs don't have to cross state lines for the case to be federal. Marijuana is still a controlled substance under federal law, even in states that allow it.

Since 2025, the HALT Fentanyl Act (Pub. L. 119-26) permanently lists "fentanyl-related substances" in Schedule I and treats them like fentanyl analogues for the mandatory minimum amounts (21 U.S.C. §§ 812, 841(b)).

Conspiracy and attempt, 21 U.S.C. § 846

Anyone who attempts or conspires to commit a federal drug crime faces the same penalties as the crime itself (21 U.S.C. § 846). For conspiracy, the government must prove:

• Two or more people agreed to commit a federal drug crime, such as distribution.
• The person knew about the agreement.
• The person joined it on purpose.

The agreement doesn't have to be written or even spoken. A person can be part of a conspiracy without meeting everyone in it or touching the drugs. Unlike the general conspiracy law, a drug conspiracy needs no proof that anyone took a step to carry it out (United States v. Shabani, 513 U.S. 10 (1994)). This is why drivers, lookouts and people who made a few calls are often charged in the same case as suppliers.

Simple possession and school zones

Having drugs for personal use without a valid prescription is a separate, lesser crime. A first offense carries up to 1 year and a minimum fine of $1,000 (21 U.S.C. § 844). Selling within 1,000 feet of a school, college, playground or public housing generally doubles the maximum (21 U.S.C. § 860).

What are the penalties?

The penalty depends mostly on the drug and the amount (21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)). Amounts are measured by the weight of the whole mixture that contains a detectable amount of the drug, except where the statute names a pure-drug amount (as for methamphetamine).

• Smaller amounts: up to 20 years, with no mandatory minimum, for most Schedule I and II drugs (§ 841(b)(1)(C)). Less than 50 kilograms of marijuana: generally up to 5 years (§ 841(b)(1)(D)).
• Death or serious bodily injury: if death or serious injury results from use of the drug, the minimum is 20 years (and up to life). The drug must be a but-for cause of the death or injury (Burrage v. United States, 571 U.S. 204 (2014)).
• Prior convictions: after one prior "serious drug felony" or "serious violent felony," the 10-year minimum becomes 15 years, and two or more priors make it 25 years. At the 5-year level, one prior makes the minimum 10 years. These increases apply only if the prosecutor files a formal notice of the prior conviction before trial or a guilty plea (21 U.S.C. § 851).
• Fines: up to $10,000,000 for an individual at the 10-year level, $5,000,000 at the 5-year level, and $1,000,000 under § 841(b)(1)(C).
• Supervised release: at least 5 years at the 10-year level, 4 years at the 5-year level, and 3 years under § 841(b)(1)(C), and more with a prior conviction.
• No probation when a mandatory minimum applies (§ 841(b)(1)(A), (B)).
• Forfeiture: drug proceeds and property used to commit the crime (21 U.S.C. § 853). A person can be made to forfeit only property they themselves obtained, not everything a co-conspirator got (Honeycutt v. United States, 581 U.S. 443 (2017)).

When can a judge go below a mandatory minimum?

The safety valve. For § 841, § 844 and § 846 cases, the judge must sentence without regard to the minimum if the judge finds all five of these (18 U.S.C. § 3553(f)):

• Limited criminal history: no more than 4 criminal history points (not counting 1-point offenses), no prior 3-point offense, and no prior 2-point violent offense. In Pulsifer v. United States, 601 U.S. 124 (2024), the Supreme Court held that a person must meet each of these three conditions.
• No violence or credible threats, and no gun or other dangerous weapon in connection with the offense.
• No death or serious bodily injury.
• Not an organizer, leader, manager or supervisor, and not in a continuing criminal enterprise.
• By sentencing, the person truthfully gave the government all the information they have about the offense.

Substantial assistance. If the government files a motion saying the person gave substantial help investigating or prosecuting someone else, the judge can go below the minimum (18 U.S.C. § 3553(e)). Only the government can file this motion.

How does sentencing work for this charge?

Drug crimes are sentenced under USSG §2D1.1. The base offense level comes from the Drug Quantity Table, from level 6 up to level 38. In a conspiracy, the amount counted includes drugs the person handled plus amounts others handled that were within the scope of what the person agreed to, in furtherance of it, and reasonably foreseeable (USSG §1B1.3). That question often matters more than anything else at sentencing.

Common adjustments include:

• Weapon: +2 if a dangerous weapon, including a gun, was possessed (§2D1.1(b)(1)).
• Violence: +2 for using, threatening or directing violence (§2D1.1(b)(2)).
• Premises: +2 for maintaining a place to make or sell drugs (§2D1.1(b)(12)).
• Fentanyl marketed as something else: +4 for knowingly passing off fentanyl or an analogue as another substance; +2 for recklessly selling it as a legitimate pill (§2D1.1(b)(13)).
• Role: increases for leaders and managers (USSG §3B1.1, §2D1.1(b)(16)); decreases for a minor or minimal role (USSG §3B1.2). With a mitigating role, high base offense levels are capped (§2D1.1(a)(5)).
• Safety valve: 2 levels off if the person meets the safety valve criteria (§2D1.1(b)(18)).
• Career offender: people with two prior felony convictions for a crime of violence or a controlled substance offense can face much higher ranges (USSG §4B1.1).
• Acceptance of responsibility: usually 2 or 3 levels off for a timely guilty plea (USSG §3E1.1).

Pending at the Supreme Court. In Beaird v. United States, No. 25-5343, set for argument on October 13, 2026, the Court agreed to decide whether Stinson v. United States (1993) still states the rule for how much weight courts must give the Guidelines’ commentary, the notes that follow each guideline. The answer could affect rules on this page that come from commentary rather than from the guideline text itself.

Guideline numbers on this page are from the Guidelines Manual in effect since November 1, 2025, which no longer uses “departures”: the judge calculates the range, then weighs the factors in 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a). For more depth, see How the federal Sentencing Guidelines work, at Sentencing.net, a Criminal Center site.

Statutes covered on this page

Each federal law this page covers, listed by how often it was a statute of conviction in fiscal year 2025 (U.S. Sentencing Commission data). For each one: the official section heading, what the government must prove, the penalties, and the sentencing guideline the Commission's Statutory Index assigns to it. See all statutes by title and section.

• 21 U.S.C. § 841
• 21 U.S.C. § 846
• 21 U.S.C. § 960
• 21 U.S.C. § 952
• 21 U.S.C. § 963
• 46 U.S.C. § 70503
• 21 U.S.C. § 843(b)
• 21 U.S.C. § 860
• 21 U.S.C. § 856
• 21 U.S.C. § 959

How do these cases usually start and move?

Drug cases often start with a traffic stop, a controlled buy by an informant, a package search, or months of surveillance by the DEA, FBI, Homeland Security Investigations or a task force with local police. Larger cases may use court-approved wiretaps of phones (18 U.S.C. § 2518), phone location data and search warrants. Many people are arrested on a criminal complaint and indicted later.

In drug cases with a maximum of 10 years or more, the law presumes that no release conditions are enough, so the person stays in custody unless the defense rebuts that presumption at the detention hearing (18 U.S.C. § 3142(e)(3)(A)). Early decisions about talking to agents or cooperating can shape the whole case, so they are best made with a lawyer who has seen the evidence.

The usual stages of a federal case

1. 1Investigation. Agents gather records and interview witnesses, often using grand jury subpoenas. Someone the prosecutor views as a "target" may get a target letter before an indictment (Justice Manual 9-11.151, 9-11.153).
2. 2Charges. A federal felony is usually charged by indictment: a grand jury decides in private whether there is probable cause (Fed. R. Crim. P. 6, 7). Some cases start with an arrest on a criminal complaint.
3. 3First appearance and detention. After an arrest, the person goes before a magistrate judge without unnecessary delay (Fed. R. Crim. P. 5). The judge decides whether they are released or held until trial (18 U.S.C. § 3142).
4. 4Evidence and motions. The government must turn over certain evidence (Fed. R. Crim. P. 16). The defense can ask the court to suppress evidence or dismiss charges (Fed. R. Crim. P. 12).
5. 5Plea or trial. Many federal cases end in a guilty plea, which the judge must find knowing and voluntary (Fed. R. Crim. P. 11). At trial, the government must prove every element beyond a reasonable doubt, and a jury verdict must be unanimous (Fed. R. Crim. P. 31(a)).
6. 6Sentencing. A probation officer writes a presentence report, and each side can object in writing within 14 days of receiving it (Fed. R. Crim. P. 32). The judge then decides the sentence under 18 U.S.C. § 3553(a).

More on what to do at each stage: Facing federal charges? What to do now.

What defense issues come up in these cases?

• Searches and seizures. Was the stop, search, warrant or wiretap lawful? In Chatrie v. United States (2026), the Supreme Court held that police conducted a Fourth Amendment search when they got a person's cell-phone location data from Google (our news post on Chatrie).
• Drug type, weight and purity. The amount decides the minimum. Lab testing, how the weight was measured, and whether packaging was counted all matter.
• Knowledge. Did the person know drugs were in the car, package or house?
• One sale versus a conspiracy. A simple buyer-seller relationship is not, by itself, a conspiracy. How big was the agreement the person actually joined, and which amounts were foreseeable to them?
• Prior convictions. Does an old conviction really qualify for a § 851 increase, and was proper notice filed?
• Safety valve eligibility. Does the person's record meet each § 3553(f)(1) condition after Pulsifer?
• Role. Was the person a manager or a courier? Role changes both the range and safety valve eligibility.
• Death results. Was the drug a but-for cause of the death or injury, as Burrage requires?
• Prescribers. For doctors and pharmacists, the government must prove they knew or intended that the prescriptions were unauthorized (Ruan v. United States, 597 U.S. 450 (2022)).

Every case turns on its own facts. These are issues to look at, not predictions about how any case will turn out.

What happens after a conviction?

If the Sentencing Commission lowers a drug guideline and makes the change retroactive, a person in prison may ask the judge for a reduction under 18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(2).

• Appeal. A notice of appeal is usually due within 14 days after the judgment is entered (Fed. R. App. P. 4(b)(1)(A)). Many plea agreements waive the right to appeal, but in Hunter v. United States (2026) the Supreme Court held that a waiver can’t be enforced when doing so would cause a miscarriage of justice, a high bar. See federal appeals at Sentencing.net.
• A § 2255 motion. A motion asking the sentencing court to vacate, set aside or correct the sentence, for example for ineffective assistance of counsel. It is usually due within one year after the conviction becomes final (28 U.S.C. § 2255(f)). See 2255motion.com.
• Compassionate release. A motion asking the judge to reduce a prison sentence for extraordinary and compelling reasons, filed after the person asks the warden and either exhausts BOP appeals or waits 30 days (18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A)). It can’t be used to attack the validity of the conviction itself (Fernandez v. United States (2026)). See CompassionateRelease.com.
• Clemency. The President can pardon a federal offense or commute (shorten) a federal sentence (U.S. Const. art. II, § 2). See Clemency.com.