NATIONALLY RECOGNIZED FEDERAL LAWYERS
Mandatory Minimum Sentences When the Law Requires Prison Time
|Thanks for visiting Spodek Law Group – a second-generation law firm managed by Todd Spodek. We have over 40 years of combined experience defending federal cases, including the Anna Delvey Netflix series case, the Ghislaine Maxwell juror misconduct matter, and the Alec Baldwin stalking prosecution. Mandatory minimum sentences eliminate judicial discretion. Congress sets a floor – judges can’t go below it regardless of circumstances. A defendant with no criminal history, minimal role, and extraordinary mitigation might deserve probation under the guidelines, but if a mandatory minimum applies, prison is required. Understanding mandatory minimums matters if you’re facing federal charges.
This article explains mandatory minimum sentences – what they are, which offenses carry them, and when relief is available.
What Mandatory Minimums Are
Mandatory minimums are statutory provisions that require judges to impose at least a specified term of imprisonment. Five years. Ten years. Twenty-five years. Life. Congress sets these minimums in criminal statutes, not in the Sentencing Guidelines.
When a mandatory minimum exceeds your guideline range, the mandatory minimum controls. Your guideline range might be 37-46 months based on offense level and criminal history. But if you face a five-year (60-month) mandatory minimum, you’re getting at least sixty months. The judge has no authority to sentence below that unless specific statutory exceptions apply.
When your guideline range exceeds the mandatory minimum, the guideline range applies. Level 32 with Criminal History Category I produces 121-151 months even though the mandatory minimum might be only ten years.
Mandatory minimums were enacted by Congress starting in the 1980s to create certainty and severity in sentencing. Drug trafficking, firearms, child pornography, immigration – Congress layered mandatory minimums onto these offenses to ensure prison time. The Sentencing Reform Act created advisory guidelines. Mandatory minimums created hard floors judges can’t breach.
Drug Trafficking Mandatory Minimums
Drug mandatory minimums under 21 U.S.C. § 841(b) are triggered by drug type and quantity.
Five-year mandatory minimum (60 months) applies to: 500 grams of cocaine, 28 grams of crack cocaine, 100 grams of heroin, 100 kilograms of marijuana, 5 grams of methamphetamine (pure), or 50 grams of methamphetamine mixture.
Ten-year mandatory minimum (120 months) applies to: 5 kilograms of cocaine, 280 grams of crack, 1 kilogram of heroin, 1,000 kilograms of marijuana, 50 grams of meth (pure), or 500 grams of meth mixture.
Notice how small the quantities are for crack and meth. Twenty-eight grams of crack is less than one ounce – five-year mandatory. Fifty grams of pure meth triggers ten years.
Prior felony drug convictions increase these minimums. One prior felony drug conviction doubles them – the five-year becomes ten, the ten-year becomes twenty. Two or more prior felony drug convictions trigger mandatory life.
Death or serious bodily injury resulting from drug distribution triggers twenty-year minimums for first offense, life for prior convictions.
Firearms Mandatory Minimums
Federal firearms statutes carry harsh mandatory minimums.
18 U.S.C. § 924(c) punishes using or carrying a firearm during a drug trafficking crime or crime of violence. First offense: five-year mandatory minimum, consecutive to the underlying offense. If the firearm is brandished: seven years consecutive. If discharged: ten years consecutive.
Second or subsequent § 924(c) convictions carry twenty-five-year consecutive mandatories. This doesn’t require a prior conviction in a separate case – if you’re convicted of two § 924(c) counts in the same case, the second one is “subsequent” and carries twenty-five years on top of the first five.
The consecutive nature destroys defendants. You get sentenced for drug trafficking – say, ten years. Then the § 924(c) adds five consecutive. Total: fifteen years, with no possibility of concurrent sentences.
18 U.S.C. § 922(g) prohibits felons from possessing firearms. No mandatory minimum for simple possession. But if you have three prior violent felony or serious drug offense convictions, the Armed Career Criminal Act imposes a fifteen-year mandatory minimum. ACCA fifteen-year minimums are brutal and heavily litigated.
Child Pornography Mandatory Minimums
Federal child pornography offenses carry mandatory minimums that courts and even some prosecutors consider excessive.
Production of child pornography under 18 U.S.C. § 2251 carries a fifteen-year mandatory minimum. Transportation carries five years. Receipt and distribution carry five years. Simple possession carries no mandatory minimum but still faces sentencing under the guidelines.
These stack. If you’re convicted of production and transportation, that’s fifteen plus five – twenty years minimum.
Immigration Mandatory Minimums
Illegal reentry after deportation under 8 U.S.C. § 1326 carries mandatory minimums based on the underlying removal reason.
Simple illegal reentry: no mandatory minimum. But if you were removed after a felony conviction, two-year mandatory. If removed after an aggravated felony conviction, ten-year mandatory.
What qualifies as “aggravated felony” for immigration purposes is broader than it sounds. Drug trafficking, firearms offenses, crimes of violence, theft with one-year sentence, fraud with $10,000 loss – many offenses qualify. The ten-year mandatory applies to large numbers of illegal reentry defendants.
How to Avoid or Reduce Mandatory Minimums
Three main avenues exist: safety valve, substantial assistance, and the First Step Act.
Safety valve under 18 U.S.C. § 3553(f) allows judges to sentence below drug mandatory minimums if five conditions are met: offense level 16 or below after acceptance of responsibility, no violence or firearm, no death or serious injury, not an organizer or leader, and you provided all information about the offense to the government. Safety valve applies only to drug offenses under § 841 and § 960 – not firearms, not child pornography, not immigration.
The First Step Act expanded safety valve in 2018. Previously, you needed zero or one criminal history point. Now you qualify with up to four points if prior convictions don’t disqualify you.
Substantial assistance under 18 U.S.C. § 3553(e) permits sentences below mandatory minimums if the government files a motion stating you provided substantial assistance. Government discretion controls entirely. If they file the motion, judges can go below the mandatory. If they don’t, judges can’t.
Cooperation means providing information about criminal activity, testifying against co-defendants, making controlled purchases, or helping build cases. The assistance must be “substantial” – minor cooperation doesn’t qualify.
The First Step Act made Fair Sentencing Act crack reforms retroactive. If you’re serving a sentence under the old 100:1 ratio, you can petition for reduction under the new 18:1 ratio.
Challenging Mandatory Minimums
Defense attorneys challenge mandatory minimums in several ways.
Challenging drug quantity. Mandatory minimums depend on specific quantities. If the government alleges five kilograms of cocaine but you can prove it was only 4.5 kilograms, you drop from the ten-year mandatory to the five-year mandatory. Every gram counts.
Challenging relevant conduct. Quantity includes all reasonably foreseeable drugs in the conspiracy. Defense challenges foreseeability – were you aware of all five kilograms, or only the 500 grams you personally distributed? Limiting relevant conduct limits mandatory minimums.
Challenging predicate convictions. ACCA and illegal reentry enhancements depend on prior convictions qualifying as violent or aggravated felonies. Supreme Court cases like Johnson v. United States narrowed these definitions. Many defendants who previously faced ACCA minimums no longer qualify.
Negotiating charge bargaining. Prosecutors control which charges are filed. They can charge offenses without mandatory minimums, charge quantities that trigger lower minimums, or dismiss prior conviction allegations. Defense attorneys negotiate to avoid or minimize mandatory minimums during plea discussions.
Real Examples Showing Impact
Defendant A: Level 18, Category I. Guideline range 27-33 months. No mandatory minimum. Sentenced to 30 months.
Defendant B: Same offense level and criminal history. But § 841(b)(1)(B) five-year mandatory applies. Sentenced to 60 months despite guideline range of 27-33 months. The mandatory added thirty months.
Defendant C: Drug trafficking with § 924(c) gun count. Drug sentence: 120 months. Section 924(c): 60 months consecutive. Total: 180 months. Without the gun, would have faced 120.
Defendant D: Armed career criminal, fifteen-year mandatory. Guideline range would have been 46-57 months. Sentenced to 180 months minimum because of ACCA.
Why This Matters to Your Federal Case
Mandatory minimums can’t be negotiated down based on mitigating factors. Extraordinary family circumstances, health issues, minimal role, lack of criminal history – none of it matters if a mandatory minimum applies unless you qualify for safety valve or substantial assistance.
At Spodek Law Group, we’ve challenged mandatory minimums in thousands of federal cases over 40 years. We know how to litigate drug quantities, challenge predicate convictions, qualify clients for safety valve, and negotiate cooperation agreements. Our team includes former federal prosecutors who understand how the government evaluates substantial assistance.
Mandatory minimums determine the floor of your sentence. If you’re facing federal charges that carry mandatory minimums, you need attorneys who know how to avoid them, reduce them, or qualify you for exceptions. At Spodek Law Group, we’re ready to fight for you.