Category: Awareness

NC OCME Reports Updated

Fentvic has recieved updated reports from the North Carolina Office of Chief Medical Examiner (OCME). Latest reports can be found here on the Fentvic website.

There were 266 fentanyl-positive deaths in July 2023 compared to 251 in July 2022. Year to date, there is a 6% increase (2,045) compared to this time last year, January to July 2022 (1,926).

Data Source: NC OCME Toxicology data; NC OCME Toxicology is nationally accredited by the American Board of Forensic Toxicology, Inc. NC OCME Toxicology provides forensic analytical testing of specimens for all 100 counties of the statewide medical examiner system. Toxicology results are based on blood, vitreous fluid, or other specimens used for testing at the discretion of the pathologist and/or toxicologist. For additional information regarding these reports, please contact ocme.data.request@dhhs.nc.gov

A UNC student OD’d on Duke campus, and it took a student journalist to bring the story to light

On March 9, 2023, a freshman from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill overdosed on fentanyl outside a Duke University dorm.

She died in a hospital two days later, surrounded by family and friends, according to her obituary.

Very few people knew about her death, until a Duke student journalist started investigating, learning that 19-year-old Grace Burton wasn’t the only UNC student or alum to recently die from fentanyl poisoning.

She wasn’t even the only one to lose her life to an overdose that week. Now federal agents say the same person supplied the drugs to both students.

Duke student and journalist Charlotte Kramon heard about Burton’s on-campus death and figured more information would come out publicly.

But, she says, “There was no announcement; there were very few people outside of some of those who were close to the situation that knew.”

Kramon started looking into the death and charges related to it, publishing her findings along with co-author Michael Hewlett in the online magazine The Assembly.

Continue reading “A UNC student OD’d on Duke campus, and it took a student journalist to bring the story to light”

UNC student’s family seeks justice for overdose death

The family of a University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill freshman student who died after overdosing on fentanyl-laced cocaine on the campus of Duke University is seeking some justice for their daughter.

So far, no one has been charged in the death of Elizabeth Grace Burton, or Gracie as her family called her. She was 19 years old.

Court documents reveal Burton became “unsteady” and “wobbly on her feet” about an hour after meeting with a suspected drug dealer on March 9 outside a Duke student’s dorm. The former Duke student is Patrick Rowland, who pleaded guilty to a drug distribution charge.

An autopsy revealed Burton died two days after investigators said she met up with Rowland after a party and contacted him to buy cocaine.

Continue reading “UNC student’s family seeks justice for overdose death”

The latest college campus freebies? Naloxone and fentanyl test strips

At the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, three students stand behind a card table covered in naloxone injection kits. When a curious student leans in and asks what the kits are for, Caroline Clodfelter, one of the co-founders of the student group running the table, explains: “It will reverse an opioid overdose. … So let’s say you’re going out to a frat — stick it in your pocket. It’s easy to just have on you.”

Nearly 600 miles away, at the State University of New York’s Delhi campus, Rebecca Harrington, who works in student affairs, has also been tabling to prevent fentanyl overdoses. Her table, though, is full of colorful cups, a water jug and candies in zip-close bags — tools for her demonstration on how to use a fentanyl test strip. These test strips allow students to see whether a pill has been laced with the deadly synthetic opioid.

Test strips and naloxone are becoming more and more common on college campuses, and at least one health department has recommended they be added to school packing lists. For students who didn’t bring their own, many campuses are handing them out at welcome fairs, orientation events or campus health centers.

As more teens overdose on fentanyl, schools face a drug crisis unlike any other
Fentanyl was involved in the vast majority of teen overdose deaths in 2021, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Nearly a quarter of those deaths involved counterfeit pills that weren’t prescribed by a doctor. And the problem has been following teens onto college campuses.

Students may think they’re taking pills like oxycodone, Xanax or Vicodin. Instead, those pills often have fentanyl in them, resulting in overdoses on campuses across the U.S., from Ohio to Colorado to Oregon. At UNC-Chapel Hill, three students died from fentanyl poisoning in just the last two years.

Continue reading “The latest college campus freebies? Naloxone and fentanyl test strips”

Surge in drug overdoses reported in Greensboro

There have been at least fifteen drug overdoses in Greensboro within a span of two weeks, along with more than a dozen bodies discovered in that timeframe. According to police reports, the victims ranged drastically in age from teenagers to those in their nineties.

One of the victims, who overdosed in late September, overdosed again less than two weeks later. At least one other victim was listed as unhoused at the time of their overdose.

According to the NC Department of Health and Human Services, the rate of medication and drug overdose deaths was 29.6 per 100,000 residents in Guilford County between 2017-21. Statewide, the rate was 27.6 per 100,000 residents. As for opioid overdose deaths, Guilford County had 24.4 deaths per 100,000 residents while the state had 22.7.

More than 4,000 people died from overdoses in 2021, NCDHHS reported, and “more than 77 percent of overdose deaths in the state likely involved fentanyl, often in combination with other substances.”

The number of retail opioid prescriptions dispensed in 2020 was 55.9 prescriptions per 100 residents. Statewide, the rate was 52.8 prescriptions per 100 residents.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, the number of drug overdose deaths nationally increased more than 16 percent from 2020-21, while opioid-involved death rates increased by more than 15 percent over the same time. More than 75 percent of the nearly 107,000 drug overdose deaths in 2021 involved an opioid. In the last decade, there has been a significant increase in overdose deaths involving synthetic opioids, “particularly those involving illicitly manufactured fentanyl,” the CDC states. Fentanyl is a strong synthetic opioid which can be combined with other substances such as heroin, counterfeit pills and cocaine, so people may not even be aware that they are consuming it. The lethal dose of fentanyl is much smaller than other drugs — while the lethal dose of heroin is 100 mg, fentanyl’s is just two.

In August, WRAL reported on rising fentanyl deaths and drug usage in North Carolina. The Nash County Sheriff’s Office recently confiscated “enough fentanyl to kill every person in the county,” the report stated.

Need help?

If you are struggling with drug use, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration’s helpline is available at 1-800-662-4357 or go to their website. The national helpline is a free and confidential treatment referral and information service for individuals and families facing mental and/or substance use disorders. Help is available in English and Spanish 24/7 every day of the year.

An opioid overdose requires immediate medical attention. SAMHSA and Minutes Matter have instructions on how to spot the signs of an opioid overdose and what to do.

Are you or someone else experiencing a mental health emergency? The cities of Winston-Salem and Greensboro have new programs.

If you live in Greensboro and are experiencing a mental health crisis, the city’s behavioral health response team (BHRT) team can help. BHRT is a team of clinical mental-health counselors, licensed clinical social-worker associates, police officers and a paramedic.

If you live in Winston-Salem and are experiencing a mental health crisis, call 911 and ask for the behavioral evaluation and response (BEAR) Team, the city’s police-free mental health response crew.

Opioid overdose reversal (Naloxone/Narcan) resources:

NEXT Distro provides free Naloxone, a medicine that quickly reverses an opioid overdose, and can mail to you.

In Winston-Salem, Narcan is available at the front desk of Forsyth County Department of Public Health located at 799 Highland Ave. Last September, the county installed a free Narcan vending machine inside the Forsyth County Detention Center.

Guilford County Department of Public Health offers free naloxone kits and instructions/training on its use at these locations:

Greensboro Locations:

  • Guilford County Division of Public Health Pharmacy

1100 East Wendover Ave

  • Triad Adult & Pediatric Medicine

1002 S. Eugene St

High Point Locations:

  • Guilford County Division of Public Health Pharmacy

501 East Green Drive

  • Kaitlyn’s House

410 Gatewood Ave

  • Triad Adult & Pediatric Medicine

606 N. Elm

New Hanover County Billboard Project

The Fentvic New Hanover Billboard project is live in New Hanover County.

The locations of the 6 public safety billboards in New Hanover County are:

  • 1. 143 S College Road + Market Street
  • 2. 5216 Oleander Drive + Hawthorne
  • 3. 1328 US 421 + Spencer Farlow Drive
  • 4. US-17 + 7491 Market Street
  • 5. US-17 + Military Cutoff exit
  • 6. US-17S + NC210

Why drug distribution investigations can take months, years before charges are filed

Despite the state cracking down on people who deal deadly drugs, holding those responsible remains difficult.

WILMINGTON, N.C. (WECT) – Fentanyl claims the lives of about 12 North Carolinians every day.

Death by distribution laws hold the dealers accountable if users die, but it’s not as simple as tracking the dealer down.

New Hanover and Pender County district attorney Ben David says most cases involving death by distribution don’t go to trial, often because the nature of the crime doesn’t leave much evidence.

“The best victim can’t tell you what happened. And so, we have to try these like any homicide, relying on things like digital footprints and witness interviews,” David said.

David says because they need evidence beyond a reasonable doubt, investigations can take months, sometimes even more than a year, before charges are filed. It’s worth it to the families who have lost someone.

“Everyone’s someone’s baby. And we know that this epidemic is visiting houses across our district. And we are going to go wherever we can to make sure that justice is being done,” he said.

Part of that justice is stiffer penalties, such as murder charges for the dealer if the user dies.

David isn’t buying it when someone says they didn’t know the drugs were laced.

“No one can claim, at this point, that they’re unaware that fentanyl is deadly. And if they are mixing that into drugs or are selling it in a pure form to begin with, they should not be surprised when their best customers are dying,” David said. “They should not be surprised when we try to put them into prison for murder and nothing less.”

David wants people to know that North Carolinians are protected under immunity to call 9-1-1 in the case of an emergency, even if it involves illegal drugs. It can save lives.

Copyright 2023 WECT. All rights reserved.

Read the full article and watch the video on the WECT News 6 website.

Carolina Beach police charge man in connection to overdose death

CAROLINA BEACH, N.C. (WECT) – The Carolina Beach Police Department has charged a Wilmington man in connection to an overdose death.

According to the CBPD, 23-year-old Ethan Hill Faircloth was charged with death by distribution on Oct. 2, 2023.

“On September 7th, 2022, Officers with the Carolina Beach Police Department, Carolina Beach Fire Department, and NHRMC Novant EMS responded to the report of an overdose at a residential address on Hamlet Ave.,” a news release states. “The male was found to be deceased upon officers’ arrival and identified as 22-year-old Dennis ‘Nash’ Nye Connor of Carolina Beach, N.C.

“After an extensive investigation, Carolina Beach Police Department Detectives were able to identify Faircloth as being responsible for the distribution of illegal narcotics that led to Mr. Connor’s death.”

Faircloth was served with the Death by Distribution warrant at the New Hanover County detention center where he already was confined on an unrelated charge from the Wilmington Police Department.

Faircloth was placed on a $100,000 secured bond.

Copyright 2023 WECT. All rights reserved.

Read the full article and watch the video on the WECT News 6 website.

Woman charged with murder of Raleigh woman who died of overdose

Raleigh police said Christen Lee Neubert, 40, has been charged in connection with the drug overdose death of Maureen Walsh, 55.

A woman has been arrested and charged in connection with a fatal overdose from February.

Raleigh police said Christen Lee Neubert has been charged in connection with the drug overdose death of 55-year-old Maureen Walsh.

On Thursday, WRAL News obtained a toxicology report for Walsh that indicated methamphetamines and amphetamines were in her system when she died. Methamphetamines are considered a street drug, which is typically made in a lab illegally, whereas amphetamines are usually prescription medications like adderall and ritalin.

Neubert, 40, has been charged with murder. Neubert has pending charges for possessing methamphetamine and possession of drug paraphernalia with two probation violations.

Toxicology results, obtained by WRAL News, showed Walsh had methamphetamines and amphetamines in her system when she died.

Homicide charges in drug overdose cases are rare in North Carolina and difficult to prosecute, according to attorney Daniel Meier.

“How much of your actions caused the death versus the actions of the person who died and who should be responsible for that?” Meier said.

There would also have to be enough evidence to prove one person was directly tied to someone’s death.

“If I sell to Bob who sells to Jane who sells to Sue who sells to Dave and Dave dies, how far up the chain can you go as to who did it,” Meier said.

North Carolina’s “death by distribution” law holds drug dealers liable for murder if their drugs cause someone’s death, even if they didn’t intend to kill anyone.

WRAL asked Raleigh Police if Neubert faced a death by distribution charge. It’s still unclear.

They said: “We charged her with homicide due to evidence that directly links her to contributing to her death.”

North Carolina has changed its “death by distribution” law to make it easier to charge drug dealers with murder in overdose cases, even if they didn’t sell the drugs for money. The new law takes effect in December, but it’s not clear if it will lead to more prosecutions.

“District attorneys ultimately have the say,” Meier said.

Neubert has pending charges for meth and drug paraphernalia, as well as two probation violations.

On Thursday, the judge informed Neubert about the charges against her and told her they would appoint a capital defender to represent her. Her next court date is set for Nov. 2 at 9 a.m.

Read the full article and watch the video on the WRAL News website.

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