It has been reported that ten people in North Carolina die each day as a result of fentanyl poisoning and over 375 people in Davidson County have also died as a result since 2015. Recently Davidson County has been inundated with more deaths associated with fentanyl. It is saddening to hear the number of individuals that have lost their lives from fentanyl poisoning and the statistics are as shocking when the age range of those killed by fentanyl is exposed. Locally, there have been countless arrests made by law enforcement of persons selling the deadly drug within our own community. There have also been arrests made of parents and caretakers of children that are being poisoned after ingesting the drug, unaware. This dangerous drug effects everyone and has the potential of killing someone that each of us know and loves, if it hasn’t already. It is time to end the excuses that too many live by, that it is not our problem, because it now is.
The General Assembly recognizes that deaths due to opioids are devastating families and communities across North Carolina. The General Assembly finds that the opioid crisis is overwhelming medical providers engaged in the lawful distribution of controlled substances and is straining prevention and treatment efforts. As a result of these related deaths, the General Assembly enacts this law to encourage effective intervention by the criminal justice system to hold illegal drug dealers accountable for criminal conduct that results in death.
The older version of the law stated that a person is guilty of death by distribution if all of the following requirements are met:
The person unlawfully sold at least one controlled substance such as an opioid cocaine or methamphetamine
The substance sold cause the death of the user
The person who sold the drug did not act with malice
The crime was a Class C felony, which usually results in a 5-12 year prison sentence with a maximum sentence of 19 years.
The updated version of the law removes the malice requirement or proof that the drug was sold. Under the new law, perpetrators can be charged with a Class C felony if they simply distribute a drug such as methamphetamine, fentanyl or cocaine that leads to a victim’s death. If the perpetrator did act with malice, the distributor could be charged with a Class B2 felony.
On August 10th from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. at Breeden Amphitheater in Lexington, A Raced Against Drugs (RAD) is hoping to educate the community and to counteract fentanyl use and distribution with their event entitled A Day of Recovery. In addition, the event organizers and directors of the non profit organization, Michael and Lorrie Loomis will increase awareness of the life-saving drug naloxone, which is a synthetic drug, similar to morphine, that blocks opiate receptors in the nervous system. Naloxone is used in the case of overdose.
RAD is a passion project for the Loomis’ after their son, James Allen Loomis passed away from fentanyl poisoning on April, 22, 2021, making him “Forever 27.”
The RAD event is for everyone and will feature numerous experts offering kind advice for all that attend and live entertainment. There will also be food trucks, a 50/50 raffle and much more. For information please visit: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1374857129674223. To contribute to the organization to reach the directors email raceagainstdrugs2024@gmail.com.
It is time to eliminate the threat of fentanyl in our community and across NC.
BEAUFORT, N.C. (WNCT) — A 42-year-old woman pled guilty to death by distribution of controlled substances in the death of 30-year-old Pawnee Schmitz.
Carteret County Sheriff’s deputies found Schmitz’s phone at the scene and found conversations regarding drug purchases with multiple individuals the night before Schmitz’s death.
Search warrants for Schmitz’s phone records resulted in the arrest of three people including Melissa Mastropierro. Mastropierro, 42, of Atlantic, was sentenced to just more than five years to eight years in prison.
According to District Attorney Scott Thomas, on May 29, 2023, Carteret County Sheriff’s Department deputies responded to Community Road in Davis. Schmitz’s father made the call to law enforcement, reporting that he found Schmitz lying prone and unconscious on the bathroom floor. EMS arrived to find Schmitz deceased.
Drug paraphernalia and two small bags of methamphetamine and fentanyl were discovered close to Schmitz’s body, according to the sheriff’s office. An autopsy confirmed that the cause of death was from methamphetamine and fentanyl toxicity.
A Wilson man has been charged with felony death by distribution in a teenager’s death from fentanyl intoxication last year.
Albert Graham Green, 23, was initially arrested on Oct. 28 and charged with selling and delivering a Schedule II controlled substance in connection with the juvenile’s death, according to a release from Sgt. Eric McInerny, public information officer with the Wilson Police Department.
Green was given a $100,000 secured bond and placed in the Wilson County Detention Center.
On Tuesday, Green was charged with felony death by distribution.
Green turned himself in on Wednesday and was released on a $1 million unsecured bond.
McInerny said officers with the Wilson Police Department were dispatched to 1705 Hillcrest Drive for a report of an unconscious person at 8:20 p.m. on Sept. 25.
Dispatchers told police that a 17-year-old boy was unresponsive and not breathing, McInerny said. Officers arrived on scene and Wilson County EMS pronounced the juvenile deceased.
Emily Robinson was convicted of supplying the drugs that killed a man by overdose back in 2021.
ALAMANCE COUNTY, N.C. — A jury heard closing arguments Tuesday in the death by distribution case involving the Alamance County Sheriff’s daughter.
Emily Robinson faces several drug-related charges. The biggest among them —death by distribution.
Possession with intent to sell or deliver a controlled substance
Maintaining a building for sale of controlled substances
Possession of drug paraphernalia
Sale or delivery of controlled substance
Death by distribution
The jury found Robinson guilty of death by distribution. Court documents show she will serve and active sentence between 60 to 84 months.
Robinson is accused of supplying the fentanyl that killed Robert James Starner Jr. on September 15, 2021. The state medical examiner’s office determined Starner died from one or a combination of fentanyl, cocaine, and methamphetamine.
The prosecution said witness interviews, phone messages, and GPS all indicated that Starner met up with Robinson to buy fentanyl right before he died.
The defense argued that it could have been other drugs that contributed to Starner’s death rather than the fentanyl that was allegedly supplied by Robinson.
CABARRUS COUNTY, N.C. — A person accused of supplying the drugs that led to a man’s death pleaded guilty in court on Friday.
The hearing was a long time coming for the family of Marshall Abbott, who died due to fentanyl poisoning in June 2022. He died one day before his 30th birthday.
Aaron Furr was arrested in connection with Abbott’s death and charged with death by distribution. Police say he supplied the fentanyl that killed Abbott.
In court Friday, Furr pleaded guilty to the charge. He was sentenced to about five and a half to seven and a half years in prison.
His family sighed with relief when Furr was sentenced.
“I’m a mom. I fought for Marshall his whole life and I’ll always fight for him,” Beth Abernathy said.
Abernathy has fond memories of her son.
“He was an amazing father and amazing son, an amazing friend. And this world is a darker place without him,” she said.
Her husband, Matt Abernathy, said losing Marshall changed everything for him.
“It’s a before and an after — Before Marshall and after Marshall — and life is just different,” he said.
The district attorney’s office sent a statement to Channel 9, saying, “it was an honor to advocate for justice for Marshall Abbott and his family.” But Beth Abernathy said justice won’t stop here.
“Marshall’s case will set a precedent for every family that has to go through this,” she said. “We’ve created a roadmap here in Cabarrus County, and we have proven that you can successfully investigate and prosecute these cases. And we will stand by every fentanyl family in our county and across the state to make sure that every fentanyl dealer is punished to the full extent of the law.”
After the plea hearing, Marshall Abbott’s family and other advocates who came to support them met with the district attorney and assistant district attorney. Goetz was in that meeting while the DA thanked the family for fighting so hard and talked about work they will do in the future to fight for other families.
RALEIGH, N.C. – Reginald Webb, a 33-year-old resident of Garner, has been sentenced to 198 months in prison for distributing heroin and fentanyl in the Raleigh area. On April 11, 2017, Webb was the source of the fentanyl distributed to a 22-year-old woman who overdosed and died. Webb pled guilty on January 5, 2024. Webb’s co-defendant in this case, as well as an additional individual who was indicted separately, have previously pled guilty to charges and are awaiting sentencing.
“In 2023, there were more than 4,000 suspected overdose deaths in North Carolina. Drug dealers who lace fentanyl into their supply and prey on vulnerable individuals who have an addiction should know that the U.S. Attorney’s Office will use every tool available to seek justice for victims of fentanyl poisoning and their families” said U.S. Attorney Michael Easley. “Webb’s actions show a complete disregard for human life motivated by sheer greed.”
THOMASVILLE, N.C. (WGHP) — A High Point man was sentenced to 8-11 years in prison after pleading guilty to death by distribution, according to the Thomasville Police Department.
On May 28, 2021, officers came to the 300 block of James Avenue and found 35-year-old Jacob Fields dead at the scene.
An autopsy report later revealed that Fields died from a fentanyl overdose.
Investigators identified Larento Valentino Grady Jr., 30, of High Point as the person who supplied the fentanyl to Fields.
On June 13, 2022, the High Point Police Department and Thomasville officers located and arrested Grady at his High Point home without incident.
Grady was indicted by a Davidson County Grand Jury on charges of second-degree murder and death by distribution in July 2022.
On Wednesday, Grady pleaded guilty to the death by distribution charge and was sentenced to serve a minimum of 100 months and a maximum of 132 months in prison.
“The sentence of Larento Grady Jr., to over eight years in prison is a testament to the hard work Thomasville detectives and the Davidson County District Attorney’s Office put into this investigation to ensure our goal was accomplished,” said Detective Lt. Jeff McCrary. “Thomasville detectives continue to work tirelessly alongside the Davidson County District Attorney’s Office and other law enforcement partners to ensure the people dealing drugs in our community are held fully accountable for the death and destruction they selfishly cause.”
A man charged in connection with an overdose death in 2021, has pleaded guilty to death by distribution.
Thomasville police said on May 28, 2021, they responded to James Avenue and discovered the body of 35-year-old Jacob Fields. An autopsy report revealed Fields died from a fentanyl overdose.
Grady was sentenced to serve a minimum of 100 months and a maximum of 132 months in prison or more than eight years.
Davidson County deputies said Dustin Kirby and Gavin Blackburn were charged in connection to a deadly fentanyl overdose case.
DAVIDSON COUNTY, N.C. — Two people were charged Monday in connection to a deadly drug-related overdose case in Davidson County, according to officials.
The Davidson County Sheriff’s Office said on July 29, 2023, deputies were called to Holly Grove Lutheran Church on 212 Holly Grove Lutheran Church Rd. in Lexington about a man found dead in the parking lot. Investigators said evidence on the scene led them to believe it may have been related to a drug overdose.
Detectives said after investigating for several months, they found out that 24-year-old Gavin Blackburn, of Thomasville, and 33-year-old Dustin Kirby, of Thomasville, supplied drugs to the victim before his death.
An autopsy report showed details that the victim died as a result of the toxic effects of fentanyl and cocaine.
On Monday, May 6, 2024, detectives found and arrested Blackburn and Kirby on a warrant for 2nd-degree murder death by distribution.
Both are being held in the Davidson County Detention Center and are scheduled to appear in Lexington District Court on Monday, June 3, 2024.
by Jennifer Fernandez, North Carolina Health News May 9, 2024
By Jennifer Fernandez
GREENSBORO — Randy Abbott lost his daughter to a drug overdose in 2015.
No one called for help in time.
Diannee Carden’s son died from a heroin overdose in 2012.
No one called for help in time.
As North Carolina continues to lose more people to overdoses every year — a record 4,339 in 2022 — parents and families are calling for a change in state laws that they say would encourage people to call for help, even if they had used drugs themselves or had supplied the potentially fatal dose.
“We do not support the current approach of tougher criminality in prison for the non drug dealer who participates in an overdose event,” Carden said Wednesday during a news conference on the changing legal landscape of the opioid epidemic.
Diannee Carden
“We cannot be quiet. We will continue, as family members who have lost someone to overdose, to speak out. We want policies that work to keep people alive with compassion, support and harm reduction,” added Carden, who founded ekiM for Change after her son’s death (the organization’s name honors her son Mike, using his name spelled backwards). The Pitt County-based nonprofit provides a variety of harm reduction services, from clean needles and naloxone to fentanyl test strips and HIV testing.
Abbott spoke earlier in the week at a news conference in Greensboro to release the results of a new survey from Expand Good Sam NC that showed likely North Carolina voters also want to see changes in the state’s Good Samaritan law.
“In a drug overdose event, voters clearly state that greater emphasis needs to be placed on saving an overdose victim’s life instead of charging someone with a drug offense,” said Abbott, coalition coordinator and a parent advocate.
Expand Good Sam NC is a coalition of organizations from across the state proposing key changes to the state’s Good Samaritan law that they say will encourage people to call for assistance without fear of penalty.
The group commissioned a poll of likely voters conducted by phone last month by Strategic Partners Solutions, a Raleigh-based consulting firm. The poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.
Among its findings:
At least three-quarters of the 600 voters surveyed, from across the political spectrum, agreed that “Saving the life of someone who has overdosed should be more important than catching the person who supplied the drugs.”
Over two-thirds of the voters across all demographic subsets agree that a person who calls 911 for assistance in a drug overdose situation should not be charged with possession as long as they are not a drug trafficker.
These voters also overwhelmingly agree (75.5 percent) on providing protection to university students who call to report an overdose.
Nearly two-thirds (66.2 percent) of the surveyed voters agree that a person should not be charged with “death by distribution” if they called for assistance.
Of the randomly selected people surveyed, close to two in five said they have had a friend or family member die from an overdose, something that was more common for the people from rural areas.
Mary O’Donnell has long supported expanding the state’s Good Samaritan laws. Her son Sean died in 2017 after passing out while drinking with friends at a quarry near his Chatham County home. Frightened, his friends left him behind. He later fell into the quarry and drowned.
She encouraged supporters to let lawmakers know they want to see changes in the laws to help prevent more deaths.
Abbott said the changes are needed.
“We’re losing a generation,” he said. “We’re losing lives every day.”
Last year, North Carolina legislators joined a growing list of states that have strengthened “death by distribution” laws. At the same time, the state broadened its Good Samaritan law to grant limited immunity from prosecution for possession of up to one gram of any drug. Previously, only certain drugs such as cocaine and heroin were covered.
Abbott and Expand Good Sam NC said the changes to the Good Samaritan law don’t go far enough.
And Carden said making distribution laws harsher went too far.
They believe harsher punishments only put more lives at risk because people who fear getting charged for drug use are less likely to help someone who is overdosing.
Barb Walsh, executive director of Fentanyl Victims Network of North Carolina, isn’t happy with some of the changes to the state’s Good Samaritan law for a different reason: The expansion to all drugs includes fentanyl, which is highly potent and is the leading cause of overdoses in North Carolina.
Fentanyl is the drug that killed her 24-year-old daughter in 2021 when she unknowingly drank a bottle of water laced with the drug. No one has been charged in her daughter’s death.
“I disagree with that policy but went along with it to get the modified law passed,” Walsh said, adding that she thinks possession of illicit drugs as potent as fentanyl that could kill so many people is wrong.
She has been focusing her harm reduction efforts on getting the lifesaving opioid-reversal drug naloxone into the state’s schools.
Naloxone in schools
Last week, Walsh hosted a Fentanyl Awareness Day in Raleigh at the General Assembly. More than 75 families met with legislators to talk about their concerns and to encourage support for efforts like getting naloxone in schools.
The next day lawmakers introduced two bills that would appropriate $350,000 from state Opioid Settlement Funds to send naloxone to all of the state’s schools.
However, since school boards make policy decisions on the use of naloxone, Walsh said her organization is working on encouraging school systems to take advantage of the availability of the opioid-reversal drug.
She said Wake County Public Schools is considering a plan to approve having naloxone in all of its schools and may vote on it later this month.
The district, the largest in the state, already allows school resource officers to carry naloxone. The school district’s policy committee is recommending training some staff members in every school on recognizing signs of an opioid emergency and on using naloxone, according to news reports.
Last school year, school nurses, staff or SROs administered naloxone 21 times on school grounds in the state, according to the annual School Health Services Report Brochure. The year before, it was used 14 times.
‘Unrelenting disease’
North Carolina families that shared their stories of loss at the two events this week said they want lawmakers to decriminalize drug possession, increase harm reduction and addiction services, open overdose prevention centers, and provide evidence-based voluntary treatment options.
“She was a beautiful, caring, timid, sweet girl who wanted nothing but to love and be loved, to be free of this unrelenting disease,” Drake said of her daughter Kaitlyn, who died in 2020 at age 23. “She tried to outrun it many times, but it always seemed to catch up to her.”
Drake said GCStop was always there for her daughter when she was in active addiction. So it felt natural to her to give back when she was in recovery. She was volunteering up until the week before she relapsed and fatally overdosed.
“The road that brought me here is not one that I would ever have chosen but will continue to travel it in hopes to be able to spare another family from this unending pain,” Drake said.
She said she also wants to spare another person “who doesn’t deserve to die” because someone is afraid they’ll be punished “for simply doing the right thing — calling for help.”
