Criminal
Aug. 7, 2025
3 smart ways to sidestep federal sentencing minimums
Mandatory minimums remove judges' sentencing discretion and give prosecutors immense leverage, but federal law provides three limited exceptions that allow some defendants to avoid lengthy prison terms.
Many federal criminal offenses -- most notably, drug-related offenses -- trigger statutory mandatory minimum sentences. These mandatory minimums generally remove any sentencing discretion from a trial court, resulting in lengthy prison terms for defendants and tremendous leverage for federal prosecutors in plea bargaining. If the defendant knows he will face a decade in prison if convicted of a charged offense, the incentive to acce...
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