Fentanyl Archives - Page 11 of 48 - Fentanyl Victims Network of North Carolina

Families who lost loved ones to opioid crisis welcome Stein’s call for Fentanyl Control Unit

Read the original article and watch the video on the ABC11 News website.

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) — There’s a renewed push to get deadly drugs off of North Carolina’s streets. At last night’s State of the State address, Governor Josh Stein once again called for the creation of a Fentanyl Control Unit.

The task force would be comprised of law enforcement officers and prosecutors to find the illegal drug and go after those distributing it.

“Too many North Carolinians are like Debbie – parents, siblings, spouses, children, and friends who will never get their loved one back,” Stein remarked in his speech.

Governor Stein invited Debbie Dalton as one of his guests of honor to Wednesday’s address. The Charlotte mom lost her son, Hunter, to fentanyl in 2016.

Debbie Dalton, Husband, Son Hunter (middle)

On Thursday, ABC11 spoke with Debbie, who described the moment she received a standing ovation on the House floor.

“It was so surreal and so incredibly special. I’m humbled,” she said.

Debbie met Stein not long after Hunter died in 2016 and has used the last 8-plus years to advocate for the dangers of opioids. Their connection became so strong that she shared her story in a series of campaign ads for the Governor in the fall. Debbie said his memory still fuels her work on the issue.

“We need more Hunters in the world,” Dalton said. “He was this great young man, and he could be contributing. While he made a bad decision that night, you’re not supposed to suffer that sort of consequence for your decision.”

For local anti-fentanyl advocates like Barb Walsh — who founded the Fentanyl Victims Network of North Carolina — the establishment of a Fentanyl Control Unit is many years in the making.

“To me, it’s a continuation of the fight against fentanyl and his support of the over 18,000 devastated families who have a loved one who’s been killed by fentanyl,” Walsh said.

Walsh lost her daughter, Sophia, to fentanyl in August of 2021 and has since worked with lawmakers to get new legislation passed, including a bill making it easier for prosecutors to go after people who sell bad drugs. She believes the time for bipartisan action on the issue is now.

“This is not a red issue or blue issue. Fentanyl does not discriminate in who it kills,” Walsh said.

Stein’s remarks were met with bipartisan applause during last night’s address. The possibility of funding a possible Fentanyl Control Unit will likely arise during budget negotiations.

Governor Stein’s State of the State Address

On Wednesday March 12 Governor Josh Stein delivered his State of the State address.

Read the full transcript of Governor Stein’s address on the NC.gov website.

Download Transcript PDF

Gov. Stein will recognize Cornelius resident during State of the State

Read the original article on the Cornelius Today website.

March 10. By Dave Vieser. When North Carolina Governor Josh Stein delivers his first State of the State Address Wednesday evening, Cornelius resident Debbie Dalton will be recognized by the first-term governor. Dalton received the call from Stein’s office last week and she’s thrilled.

“There really aren’t words to describe how much this means to the Dalton family,” she said. “We are so grateful to Gov. Stein as well as all of Hunter’s friends who have been so supportive over the years.”

About the Dalton family

Debbie and her husband Randy lost their son Hunter, who was 23, to an accidental opioid overdose in 2016. Since then she has been dedicated to educating people about the dangers of opioids through the Hunter Dalton HD Life Foundation, which provides education about the dangers of recreational drugs as well as resources to prevent drug usage and death from overdoses.

When Stein was Attorney General, she received the Attorney General’s Dogwood Award which is given annually to honor North Carolinians who are dedicated to keeping people safe and healthy in their communities.

Dalton has been especially active in addressing students in middle schools throughout the state.

About the State of the State address

In North Carolina, the State of the State is given every two years during a joint session of the General Assembly in Raleigh.

It is held in the House chamber, as the Senate chamber is not large enough to fit everyone. There are 50 senators and 120 representatives in the House. The Council of State is there, too, as well as the N.C. Supreme Court and the N.C. Court of Appeals.

Bipartisan pair of senators reintroduce bill to expand fentanyl testing in hospitals

Read the original article on the NBC News website.

First to NBC News: The bill from Sens. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., and Jim Banks, R-Ind., is called “Tyler’s Law,” named after a California teenager who died following a fentanyl overdose.

Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif.; Sen. Jim Banks, R-Ind.

WASHINGTON — Nearly seven years after Tyler Shamash, a 19-year-old from California, died following a fentanyl overdose, a bill that his mother says could have prevented his death is getting renewed focus nearly 3,000 miles away in Washington, D.C.

Shamash overdosed a few days before he died while he was living at a sober living house in 2018. His mom, Juli Shamash, was told he tested negative for drugs because the five-panel tox screen doesn’t test for fentanyl, a synthetic opioid.

“Had we known, we could have sent him to a place with a higher level of care, instead of the sober living home where he died,” Juli Shamash said in a statement.

She said she believes the doctor didn’t know that fentanyl isn’t included in the standard test run in emergency rooms across the country, which tests for marijuana, cocaine, amphetamines, PCP and natural and semisynthetic opioids, but not synthetic opioids like fentanyl.

Sens. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., and Jim Banks, R-Ind., on Tuesday reintroduced the bill, called “Tyler’s Law,” that would direct the Department of Health and Human Services to provide hospitals with guidance on implementing fentanyl testing in routine ER drug screens, according to a news release first shared with NBC News.

In the House, Reps. Ted Lieu, D-Calif., Bob Latta, R-Ohio, and Sydney Kamlager-Dove, D-Calif., also reintroduced the legislation Tuesday.

Juli Shamash said, “This bill will save lives in situations like Tyler’s, as well as in cases where people are brought into an ER for an overdose of one substance, but they unknowingly consumed fentanyl from a poisoned product.”

Family of fentanyl overdose victim warns of drug’s dangers

The family of a Chatham County woman who died from a fentanyl overdose remembers her while also warning of the drug’s dangers.

Woman went to hotel to reset her life, family says. NC man now charged in her death.

Read the original article on the Raleigh News & Observer website.

Ashley Lane (far right) poses for a photo with her son Ashton (from left), eldest daughter Alyssa and youngest daughter Cali.

Ashley Lane was happy being a stylist, but she also was a friend and a therapist to people who were struggling, even when her own mental health and substance abuse got the better of her, her family said.

On Monday, a Durham man was accused of selling the fentanyl that caused Lane, 39, to overdose Dec. 28 at The Graduate Hotel in downtown Chapel Hill. She died on Dec. 31 at UNC Hospitals.

Aaron Donald Brooks, 40, is charged with felony death by distribution sale, possession with intent to sell and deliver a controlled substance, sale or delivery of a controlled substance, and possession of a controlled substance, court records show.

He is being held in the Orange County jail under $300,000 secured bail, records show.

Durham Tech instructor indicted on death by distribution charge, records show

Read the original article on the CBS17 News website.

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (WNCN) — A philosophy instructor at Durham Technical Community College was arrested Monday in connection with a deadly overdose in Chapel Hill last December, court records show.

Aaron Donald Brooks, 40, of Durham was indicted in Orange County Court on a death by distribution through unlawful sale of a controlled substance. He is also charged with felony possession of a Schedule I controlled substance, selling/delivering a Schedule I controlled substance, and possession with intent to manufacture/sell/deliver a Schedule I controlled substance, according to court records.

Court records show Brooks is accused of selling fentanyl to a woman on Dec. 28, leading to her death. The Chapel Hill Police Department filed the warrant for his arrest.

According to court records, Brooks was not given bond. He is scheduled to make his first appearance in Orange County Court on Monday.

Brooks was previously arrested on drug charges in Durham County on Dec. 11. The Durham County Sheriff’s Office filed the warrants for his arrest. He posted a $25,000 secured bond the following day prior to his arrest on drug charges in Orange County, according to court records.

In connection with a Durham County incident on Nov. 21, according to court records, Brooks is charged with delivering methamphetamine (two counts), selling methamphetamine (two counts), possession with intent to manufacture/sell/deliver methamphetamine, trafficking in methamphetamine, and possessing drug paraphernalia.

Court records show Brooks is charged with manufacturing/selling/delivering a controlled substance within 1,000 feet of a park and maintaining a dwelling for a controlled substance, in connection with a Durham County incident on Dec. 11.

Brooks’ next appearance in Durham County Court on these charges is scheduled for March 10, according to court records.

According to the Duke University website, Brooks is an instructor of philosophy at Durham Tech.

Brooks’ LinkedIn says he joined Durham Tech in August 2019 and has taught at the school for over five years. Prior to Durham Tech, he was a tutor at the Duke University Athletic Department in 2013 and a chaplain at the Duke University Health System from 2013 to 2014. He holds a Master of Divinity from Duke Divinity School.

According to Durham Tech, Brooks has been on administrative leave since his arrest in December. He has not been allowed on campus or to contact employees or students.

School officials said they are exploring their next steps with the advice of legal counsel.

The Durham County Sheriff’s Office has indicated none of Brooks’ charges are related to Durham Tech, according to the school.

Lenoir woman jailed under $500K bond, charged with death by distribution

Read the original article no the WSOC TV9 website.

LENOIR, N.C. — A woman has been accused of giving a deadly dose of fentanyl to a woman in Concord.

Last February, Hayli White was found along Misty Wood Lane, but police believe the drugs were sold to her in Caldwell County.

“Still shock and disbelief,” said White’s stepfather, Dustin Carswell. “You expect to see her come through the door at night, and she doesn’t. It just doesn’t seem real still.”

The Caldwell County Sheriff’s Office said they originally arrested Jessica McMahon four days after White’s death.

Deputies told Channel 9′s Dave Faherty that they seized fentanyl and other narcotics concealed in a hide-a-can they believe she purchased online that looks like a bleach and carpet cleaner bottle.

At the time, McMahon was charged with trafficking, but deputies said they were unaware of White’s death in Concord.

The Concord Police Department alerted them to the death ten days later after finding text messages in White’s phone.

Caldwell County Sheriff Kevin Bean said one of his top priorities since taking office last August is stopping the sale of fentanyl and other drugs and preventing tragedies like White’s.

“It’s my belief that if drug dealers sell this poison to our children and family members and a death occurs, they should be charged with first-degree murder and sent away for life,” Bean elaborated.

White’s family said they hoped the arrest would prevent another senseless death, and they believe by speaking out they’ll possibly help someone else.

“We understand that it’s not going to bring Hayli back, and we just don’t want other families to go through what we have during the past year,” said Carswell.

“It’s not uncommon, you know. And you just don’t think it’s going to happen to you or your family,” said White’s sister, Makenzie Kepler.

McMahon was arrested again on Monday in connection with this incident. She has been charged with death by distribution and is being held in jail under a $500,000 bond, sheriff’s deputies said.

Overdose deaths surge in Mecklenburg County

From 2019 through 2023, overdose deaths rose fastest among Black and Hispanic residents. County health officials said that in many instances, people died after using street drugs laced with fentanyl.

Read the original article on the QCityMetro website.

Fatal overdoses surged among Black and Hispanic residents in Mecklenburg County from 2019 through 2023, according to county data released on Thursday.

For each of the two groups, the drug-related death rate increased by 200% during that five-year window. For the county’s white population, the rate of fatal overdoses rose 14%.

Mecklenburg Health Director Raynard Washington called the trend “alarming.”

“These numbers are a stark reminder that the opioid epidemic is impacting every group in our community,” he said in a public statement on Thursday.

Why it matters: Despite a slight nationwide decline in recent years, drug overdoses remain the leading cause of death for Americans aged 18-44, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In 2023, more than 100,000 people died as a result of drug overdosing in the United States. Mecklenburg County recorded 356 overdose deaths in 2023, the last year for which county data were available.

What’s driving the surge?

In an interview with QCity Metro, Washington blamed the rise in overdose deaths on opioids and fentanyl, a synthetic drug that can be lethal in tiny doses. In many instances, he said, fentanyl is mixed with street drugs such as cocaine and counterfeit pills such as Adderall, Oxycodone and Percocet.

“Our illicit drugs are mostly tainted with substances that could kill you, and it doesn’t take multiple uses,” Washington said. “It takes one use.”

Washington said people share illegal pills, believing they are safe. “It’s best to get those from a pharmacist with a doctor’s prescription and not from a friend, a family member or someone in the community,” he said.

Dr. Thomas Owens, the Mecklenburg County medical examiner, said: “Almost every day we see the devastating burden of fentanyl in our community.”

What do the numbers tell us?

When it comes to race, Mecklenburg County has seen a seismic shift in overdose deaths.

As recently as 2019, white residents made up the bulk of Mecklenburg’s overdose deaths. In recent years, however, Black and Hispanic communities have seen the fastest growth rates for overdose deaths. (The death rate continues to grow for white residents as well.)

In 2019, for example, Black residents in Mecklenburg County died from overdosing at a rate of 14.99 people for every 100,000 Black residents. But just five years later, that number had surged to 44.34 overdose deaths for every 100,000 Black residents.

In his interview with QCity Metro, Washington said men accounted for a disproportionate number of overdose deaths in Mecklenburg County. Preliminary data for January showed that more than 65% of suspected fatal deaths in the county were male.

Wallace man charged with felony in connection to 2024 fentanyl overdose death

Read the original article on the WCTI News12 website.

A Wallace man is behind bars and charged in relation to an overdose death from March, 2024.

Elijan Eddie Robinson was arrested on Monday, Feb. 17, by the Duplin County Sheriff’s Office Special Operations Division following an investigation that began on March 7, 2024.

In March, 2024, Deputies responded to a call on NC 50 South in Rose Hill where they found Jacey Newkirk was found deceased in her residence.

Per a release, through an ongoing investigation, narcotic investigators with the DCSO Special Operations Division (SOD) with assistance from the DCSO Criminal Investigation Division (CID) determined that the victim had obtained narcotics from Robinson prior to her death. On February 13, 2025, the North Carolina State Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed that the cause of death was a fentanyl overdose.

As a result of the investigation, Elijah Eddie Robinson has been charged with:

Death by Distribution (Felony – 1 Count)

Robinson is currently being held in the Duplin County Jail on a $250,000 bond. Sheriff Stratton Stokes would like to thank Beulaville Police Chief Karl Mobley for his assistance in this case as well.