Texas Lawmakers Unanimously Pass Bill That Will Allow Fentanyl Dealers To Be Charged With Murder – IOTW Report

Texas Lawmakers Unanimously Pass Bill That Will Allow Fentanyl Dealers To Be Charged With Murder

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The “Combating Fentanyl” bill introduced by Republican Sen. Joan Huffman, SB 645, passed unanimously.

The legislation would reclassify deaths due to fentanyl as poisonings and open up anyone who makes, sells, or delivers the drug to being charged with murder if someone overdoses.

According to a report from the Texas Tribune, “the bill would also increase the penalty for making or delivering less than 1 gram of fentanyl from a state jail felony to a third-degree felony. If a person dies from an overdose as a result of that manufacturing or delivery of the drug, that penalty is escalated to a second-degree felony. In 2021, Huffman authored a law that increased penalties for manufacturing or delivering more than 1 gram of fentanyl.”

“Huffman’s bill would also stiffen penalties for making, delivering or possessing larger quantities of fentanyl,” the report continued. “Having between 200 and 400 grams would be a first-degree felony, which could lead to between 10 years and life in prison as well as a fine of up to $100,000. Having more than 400 grams would also be a first-degree felony punishable by at least 15 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.”

The bill has an exception for medical professionals who prescribe the drug to treat a patient.

Speaking on the Senate floor while introducing her bill, Sen. Huffman pointed out that the highly lethal drug is flooding across our borders.

“We have tragically learned the extent of how dangerous fentanyl is and how even under 1 gram is so dangerous,” Huffman said on Wednesday. “It’s a fact that fentanyl is flooding our borders. It is absolutely, without a doubt, killing our citizens on a daily basis. And it’s time that we take a comprehensive approach to combat this.” MORE

12 Comments on Texas Lawmakers Unanimously Pass Bill That Will Allow Fentanyl Dealers To Be Charged With Murder

  1. Watch who pushes even more narcan stations next to the defibrillator stations.

    Lot’s of GOV Cash Cow Contracts right there.

    Create a Problem
    Provide a Fee based Solution

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  2. I hope they strengthen the law later to include a presumption of guilt in regard to murder. i.e. if the drugs you sell have fentanyl in them, you’re presumed guilty of murder. Also, make it a capital crime.

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  3. Antidepressants are the next opioid.
    Antidepressant commercials always remind me of Lazyboy’s “Underwear Goes Inside The Pants”
    “Half the time I don’t even know what the commercial is:
    There’s people running in fields or flying kites or swimming in the ocean
    Like: “That is the greatest disease ever. How do you get that?
    That disease comes with a hot chick and a puppy.”

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  4. Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, hopefully Governor Bianco soon, and Riverside County District Attorney Mike Hestrin, hopefully Attorney General Hestrin soon, have been prosecuting, and winning, cases against fentanyl dealers for a couple of years now.
    California has some very good people staying to pick up the pieces.

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  5. “i.e. if the drugs you sell have fentanyl in them, you’re presumed guilty of murder.”

    If you can’t link a particular death to the dealer, attempted murder would be a more feasible charge.

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