Category: Awareness

Trump signs bill making tough sentences for fentanyl trafficking permanent

Read the original article on the USA Today website.

Nearly 73,000 people died from overdosing synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, according to the government.

WASHINGTON – President Donald Trump signed a law that extends tougher prison sentences for fentanyl trafficking, surrounded by relatives of people who died from overdoses and lawmakers who approved the bill.

“Today we strike a righteous blow to the drug dealers, narcotic traffickers and criminal cartels,” Trump said. “We take a historic step toward justice for every family touched by the fentanyl scourge.”

The law places fentanyl on the Drug Enforcement Administration’s list of most serious drugs with no accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse. The list includes drugs such as heroin, cocaine and LSD. Fentanyl has been temporarily assigned to the Schedule 1 category since 2018. The law makes the designation permanent.

The law also makes permanent mandatory minimum penalties of five years in prison for trafficking 10 grams of fentanyl and 10 years for 100 grams.

“It doesn’t sound like much, but it’s a big deal,” Trump said.

The Department of Homeland Security seized 27,000 pounds of fentanyl and arrested 3,600 criminal suspects in 2024.

More than 105,000 people nationwide died of drug overdoses in 2023, including nearly 73,000 from synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, according to the National Institute on Drug Abuse.

The crackdown on fentanyl distribution is also at the heart of current U.S. trade disputes with China, Mexico and Canada. Trump imposed tariffs on those countries, citing the threat of cross-border fentanyl trafficking.

“We are delivering another defeat for the savage drug smugglers and criminals and the cartels,” Trump said.

Parents of several people who died after overdosing on fentanyl spoke at the event.

Anne Fundner, whose 15-year-old son Weston died of an accidental fentanyl overdose in 2022, previously spoke at the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee last year.

“It is a lifeline for families across America for keeping our families safe,” Fundner said of the legislation. “This is what we voted for, Mr. President.”

Gregory Swan, whose 24-year-old son Drew died of fentanyl poisoning, started a group known as Fentanyl Fathers, in which parents tell their story to high schools across America.

“His passing ruined, I thought, my life,” Swan said. “There’s despair and there’s hopelessness. But we’ve been able to find some repose in going out and advocating.”

Carteret County leads state in death by distribution charges

Read the original article watch the video WNCT TV9 website.

CARTERET COUNTY, N.C. (WNCT) — Carteret County has the most charges of death by distribution in the state from 2013 to June 2024, according to the Fentanyl Victims Network of North Carolina.

The law allows officials to prosecute individuals who sell or give drugs to someone that leads to an overdose death. Carteret County has had 171 fentanyl-related deaths since 2013, according to the Fentanyl Victims Network of North Carolina.

Barb Walsh founded The Fentanyl Victims Network of North Carolina after fentanyl killed her daughter in 2021. She now collects data and information from government agencies about fentanyl deaths so people can know what is happening in their counties.

“My 24-year-old daughter was killed by fentanyl in a water bottle. August 16th, 2021,” Walsh said. “She was smart. She was successful and professional. She had just gotten a promotion. She lived in Charlotte, 24 years old, and she should still be alive.”

Carteret County Sheriff Asa Buck III said tackling the fentanyl crisis is a priority for his office. He said the death by distribution law has become a strong tool.

“Put yourself in the shoes of a grieving mother or father, many of whom I’ve talked with right here sitting in this office, then come back to me and tell me what you think about the death by distribution law,” Sheriff Buck said. “It’s easy for people to say how they would feel, but when it comes home to them, it’s a completely different story.”

Learn more about the Fentanyl Victims Network here.

New Report: U.S. drug overdose deaths rise again after hopeful decline

Read the original article on the NPR website.

A view of the sign of Center for Disease Control headquarters is seen in Atlanta, Georgia

For the first time in more than a year, street drug deaths appear to be rising across the U.S. according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The latest available data, compiled in January of this year, shows fatal overdoses over the previous 12-month period increased by roughly 1,400 deaths.

“This slight increase reflects historic data and suggests that the U.S. saw more overdose deaths in January 2025 than it did in January 2024,” the CDC said in a statement sent to NPR. “We are working on analyses to better understand geographic trends.”

The CDC data suggests roughly 82,138 deaths during the 12-month period ending in January 2025. That would be a significant increase from the December 2024 report, but it’s still far below the overdose crisis peak of 114,664 recorded in August 2023.

Still, after seventeen months of declines in fatal overdoses that stunned drug policy experts and an unprecedented 27 percent drop in drug deaths in 2024, some addiction researchers described this report as troubling.

Keith Humphreys, a researcher at Stanford University, said the new CDC data could be an early warning that drug death declines brought on by a number of factors, including the end of COVID pandemic disruptions and weaker fentanyl being sold on U.S. streets, could be fading.

“If we assume it’s not a blip, this makes it more likely that the sudden drop [in fatal overdoses] was a one-off event rather than a fundamental change in epidemic dynamics,” Humphreys said in an email.

Most overdose deaths in the U.S. are caused by fentanyl, but researchers who sample the street drug supply have warned of an increasingly dangerous mix of chemicals being sold by dealers, including cocaine and methamphetamines, as well veterinary tranquilizers such as medetomidine and xylazine.

“Overdose trends are not a one-way street, and there will be periodic local increases,” said Nabarun Dasgupta, who studies overdose trends at the University of North Carolina.

His analysis of the latest CDC data suggested “most of the country is still trending down in the right direction.”

According to Dasgupta, the “increase in predicted national numbers are driven primarily by upticks in Texas, Arizona, California and Washington.”

Continue reading “New Report: U.S. drug overdose deaths rise again after hopeful decline”

After Years of Meetings, Davidson County’s $25 Million Opioid Settlement committee pushes to finally hire coordinator

Read the original article on DavidsonLocal.com.

The Davidson County Opioid Settlement Fund Committee is looking at hiring a coordinator to oversee how to use the $12 million the county will have in opioid settlement funds.  

Currently Davidson County has been paid $6.9 million in opioid settlement funds and is slated to receive another $1.9 million in the 2025-2026 fiscal year, according to the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. 

These settlement funds are part of the $56 billion North Carolina received from the national opioid settlement lawsuit in 2021. Davidson County is slated to receive $23.4 million over the next 13 years. 

On Monday, North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson announced North Carolina will receive $145 million in a settlement with Purdue Pharma and its owners, the Sacker family. Davidson County is slated to receive an additional $2.3 million in funding from this recent settlement. Most of these funds will be distributed in the next three years according to the NC Department of Justice. 

This would bring the Davidson County Opioid Settlement fund to approximately $12 million, which has mostly not been used. Last year, the county approved $1.2 million from opioid settlement funds toward the Medically Assisted Treatment program at the Davidson County Jail. 

During the meeting on Tuesday, several committee members vented frustration on the lack of progress, stating they have met for several years and have yet to come up with a clear plan on how to spend these funds. 

Lillian Koontz, director of the Davidson County Health Department, said she proposed the idea of hiring a coordinator for the opioid settlement funds over a year ago. 

“These were the exact things we talked about and here we are a year later,” said Koontz. “We have not spent any money; we have not done any coordination…  I strongly support using some of the opioid funds to identify a human being to do the research for us, to say how much money we have, to vet the programs and then bring solid ideas to us. As it is now, we just come into a meeting, hear some ideas and then we don’t meet again for several months and we are not doing anything.” 

The committee members voted to send their recommendations to hire a coordinator/director to oversee the county opioid settlement funds to the county commissioners for approval during their meeting on June 23. If approved, the county manager would work with the county human resource director to create a job description and begin the hiring process. 

Committee member Billy West, executive director of Daymark Recovery Services, said the committee should also consider granting smaller requests, under $10,000, to community partners until the new coordinator can be hired.  

“It could be three or four months before that person actually gets (here),” said West. “In the meantime, there are other things that can be done so we are not viewed as a bunch of people sitting around with $12 million and won’t even spend $20,000 of it on local things.” 

Mike Loomis, founder of Race Against Drugs, currently has a request for approximately $6,000 in funding from the Davidson County Opioid Settlement Committee and has not had any response from the group, or had his request sent to the county commissioners.  

He is currently paying for educational materials, like several billboards to raise awareness of the impact of fentanyl overdoses, out of his own pocket. He purchases doses of Naloxone and distributes them in the community. Race Against Drugs also has an awareness event at Breeden Insurance Amphitheater in Lexington on Aug. 9. 

Loomis said he is disappointed in the progress of the opioid committee, especially when it comes to supporting those in the community who are “boots on the ground” in battling opioid addiction. 

“They are just waiting for another life to be lost,” said Loomis. “I have been doing this by myself for so long and I am up against the stigma of people struggling with addiction. I am disappointed, but I will keep doing what I do.” 

County commissioner Steve Shell said the opioid committee can already bring any spending request for use of settlement funds for approval by the county commissioners. 

The committee also discussed other options available to combat opioid addiction, including Naloxone (Narcan) vending machines, which would be available to citizens after hours. Several members showed hesitation on placing these machines in the community but voted to create a list of community partners which are already providing Naloxone. 

The providers list would be available on the United Way 211 system.  NC 211 is an information and referral service that connects people with local resources 24-hours a day. 

Major Billy Louya, who oversees operations at the Davidson County Detention Center, gave an update on MAT program. He said since Jan. 1, there have been 27 participants in the program, which equals about 1% of inmates booked into the jail. 

The MAT program uses once a month medication administered at the jail, instead of transporting inmates to local treatment clinics weekly and includes a peer support program after the inmate is released from detention. 

The committee also discussed finding additional community partners to provide more post incarceration peer support. 

The Davidson County Opioid Settlement Fund Committee meets quarterly and includes representatives from organizations impacted by opioid addiction, including the health department, law enforcement, family services, emergency services, county government, elected officials and community partners involved in prevention and recovery. 

Mom honors son’s memory by battling fentanyl crisis in North Carolina

Read the original article and watch the video on the WCNC New website.

Debbie Dalton’s advocacy continues as officials sound the alarm on the crisis.

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Union County District Attorney Trey Robison is sounding the alarm about fentanyl and opioids, something he says remains a public health and safety issue as leaders across the Tar Heel State continue seeking solutions.

According to the State Bureau of Investigation, North Carolina averages nine deaths from fentanyl overdoses every day. Community leaders say it’s the number one issue impacting their community.

That’s a number that’s too high for Debbie Dalton.

Dalton lost her son, Hunter, to fentanyl in 2016. She’s been sharing her son’s story for the past eight years. In almost every room in Dalton’s home, reminders and memories are seen throughout. She told WCNC Charlotte that Hunter was a UNC Charlotte graduate who had bright dreams.

“This is Hunter’s room — he loved penguins, so we collect penguins everywhere we go,” Dalton said.

The Monday after Thanksgiving in 2016, Dalton learned she would never see her son again. Fentanyl, which he used as a recreational drug, turned deadly.

“I was bracing for ‘Hunter’s been in an accident’. I never could have fathomed the words that Hunter had overdosed. I just remember screaming,” Dalton said.

Dalton started her own organization, the Hunter Dalton HD Life Foundation, to warn others about the dangers of recreational drug use.

“Young people today, to make the decision to try drugs, there really is one of two things that are going to happen: they’re going to end up with a life of addiction or they’re going to die,” Dalton said.

“You can’t talk about those things without also talking about mental health; they are intertwined,” said Union County District Attorney Trey Robison, who’s advocating for more robust mental health and drug addiction treatment programs and places people can go when they need help.

“We’re working on the supply side of the opioid crisis, but the demand side has to be addressed as well. We’re not going to arrest and incarcerate people out of the opioid crisis, that’s not going to happen,” he added.

In the meantime, Dalton holds onto the bucket list her son created. She keeps it in his room as a reminder of why she’s advocating for families impacted by drug addiction to receive support.

“He has on his bucket list to save someone’s life, and what 23-year-old thinks of that?” she said. “We know that’s what he’s doing, his story is saving lives.”

Dalton has been recognized by Governor Josh Stein for the work she’s doing. Next month, she will meet with North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson to talk about more ways to combat the opioid and fentanyl crisis.

Contact Siobhan Riley at sriley@wcnc.com and follow her on Facebook and X.

Alleged attempted fentanyl drugging shuts down Southern Colorado music festival

Read the original article on the KRDO website.

LAS ANIMAS COUNTY, Colo. (KRDO) – The Apogaea festival was set to be held June 4-8, but it was cut short due to alleged non-consensual drugging involving fentanyl. On Sunday, the Apogaea Board of Directors released a statement to clarify the weekend’s events.

The festival is known as a Colorado Burning Man regional event held near Trinidad, just north of New Mexico. What was expected to be a weekend full of art and music was quickly shut down.

On Thursday afternoon, event organizers say two festival goers came to a department tent, saying they had been gifted a substance that they tested positive for fentanyl. They say a volunteer notified the Apogaea Incident Command System (ICS), which in turn alerted the County emergency coordinator. Apogaea says they never had custody of the substance and did not test it.

The next morning, on Friday, organizers say a participant noticed an undissolved gelcap in their clear water bottle. This tested positive for fentanyl via two strip tests. Organizers say that since the bottle had been on volunteer premises, there was immediate concern that somebody might be targeting the volunteers. Apogaea says they tested the gelcap again with multiple reagent tests, which resulted in confirming the presence of multiple substances.

Field test methodologies are not 100% accurate, and they can result in false positives, shared the Apogaea board. With the presence of the gelcap reagent tests and the multiple positive fentanyl results, Apogaea says their teams had a high confidence that this was a situation of non-consensual drugging.

Organizers say that as a precaution, community water in the nearby Center Camp Café and Ranger Station was dumped. The board says they updated the County and worked with the Las Animas County Sheriff’s Office (LACSO) to come to the decision to close the event.

The Sheriff’s Office tells KRDO13 it was aware of the incident, however, it was not contacted by anyone to initiate a formal investigation of the alleged incident, nor have any suspects been identified.

KRDO13 spoke with Joe Richards, the Las Animas County Emergency Manager, who was in contact with the event organizers. Richards says the incident commander contacted him initially on Thursday to make him aware that two people at the festival had tested for and found fentanyl in a substance someone had given to them.

He says that after they had another instance with someone finding a capsule in their water the next day, which tested positive for fentanyl, that’s when they became more concerned and contacted him.

Richards tells KRDO13 the incident commander said they’d like to shut the event down to prevent any further risks, and he said it’s up to you, but I support it wholeheartedly.

So he says, as a group, they came to the conclusion to shut down the event, and although some are upset, he’s grateful there were no serious injuries. Richards says the incident commanders were proactive and took the right steps to handle the incident.

Richards says with 1,400-1,500 people at the event, the possibility of someone non-consensually drugging others was highly concerning, especially with how deadly fentanyl is. He says there were multiple EMTs at the festival, along with a local fire department on scene for nearly the entire event.

Apogaea says that to their knowledge, no one was dosed or harmed physically at the event, and there were zero medical transports from the site during the event.

Translate »