United States Attorney Leigha Simonton today released the following statement in response to The Dallas Morning News’ December 2024 methamphetamine series:
Federal judges, prosecutors, and agents work each day to do justice, which includes protecting our North Texas communities from defendants who seek to spread methamphetamine throughout our region. As they tackle headline-grabbing drugs like fentanyl, methamphetamine – a drug disproportionally trafficked by armed white supremacist gang and cartel members – continues to wreck lives. Research shows the methamphetamine mortality rate has increased 50-fold over the past decade as more traffickers mix meth with other drugs, and that Texas has the second-highest number of meth users in the United States. North Texas in particular has a plethora of interstate highways running north-to-south and east-to-west, and for decades we have seen meth and other deadly substances come to and through our cities at an alarming rate not seen in most of the rest of America.
Understanding the toll of methamphetamine, federal officials work doggedly to hold traffickers accountable, exhibiting leniency where appropriate. But importantly, each case – and each defendant – is different. The high sentences specifically cited by The News were impacted by various circumstances not mentioned in the articles: At least one defendant outright admitted to membership in the white supremacist gang Aryan Circle, while others worked with Mexican drug cartels like Los Zetas and others. Several lied on the stand, not only about their involvement in methamphetamine trafficking, but about where certain cash came from, the purpose of certain drug paraphernalia, their general knowledge of the drug, and even conversations they’d had with attorneys. One defendant even placed online advertisements for “ice skating,” common parlance for traffickers exchanging meth for sex during drug binges.
Calculating average methamphetamine sentences in North Texas, comparing them to meth sentences nationwide, exploring certain evidentiary standards, and even probing the fairness of the sentencing guidelines promulgated by the U.S. Sentencing Commission, are well within the bounds of objective journalism. But labeling federal judges and prosecutors “accomplices,” as if they are involved in something nefarious when in fact they are sincerely committed to justly applying the law and taking account of all the facts involved in a particular case, is misleading and offensive. While the press certainly retains the freedom to critique our system of justice, it remains the best system the world has ever known. That system, and our rights, crumble without the noble efforts of our federal Judges and Assistant United States Attorneys. I am proud to stand with them.
