Idaho lawmakers want mandatory sentences for fentanyl. What to know about the bill
Idaho StatesmanFeb 04, 2024
But attorneys say the bill would also target drug users, even those who didn’t know they bought fentanyl.
The bill, House Bill 441, doesn’t limit the drug trafficking charge to those who deliver or manufacture the drug; anyone who brought a certain amount of fentanyl into
House Bill 441, like all of Idaho’s drug trafficking laws, defines trafficking based on the number of drugs in someone’s possession, rather than based on the intent to traffic the drug.
“They are set up to be our impartial examiners of fact and law,”
The bill would also create a drug-induced homicide crime, which could be charged for someone who provided fentanyl that caused a death.
The bill would implement the following penalties for someone convicted of fentanyl trafficking:
Anyone in possession of 4-14 grams of fentanyl or 100-249 fentanyl pills would be sentenced to at least three years in prison and a minimum fine of
Anyone in possession of 14-28 grams or 250-499 pills would be sentenced to at least five years in prison and a minimum fine of
Anyone in possession of 28-500 grams or at least 500 pills would be sentenced to at least 10 years in prison and a minimum fine of
The maximum penalties are life in prison and a
Are other drugs being laced with fentanyl?
Under the bill, if law enforcement authorities find a “detectable amount” of fentanyl in 4 grams of cocaine, for example, the person could be charged with fentanyl trafficking based on the entire amount of drugs. Rep.
“Because of the language of this bill ... 4 grams of marijuana which are laced with fentanyl would pull a possessor into the mandatory minimum that (is) set forth by this fentanyl trafficking bill,” said Cannon said. “These are users.”
The sponsors of the bill said those claims are unfounded.
A state police spokesperson didn’t answer a question about whether the agency had ever found other drugs laced with fentanyl. But health experts and other news reports have also commonly acknowledged that drugs have appeared laced with fentanyl. Just last year, a 22-year-old
Reports providing information about fentanyl-laced drugs also include Gov. Brad Little’s own media campaign. The website’s facts about fentanyl, citing the
“Without the buyer’s knowledge, fentanyl is often mixed in with other drugs because it’s potent and cheap to manufacture,” Little’s fact sheet reads. “It has been found in almost every drug, including heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine, molly/MDMA, and prescription opioid look-alike pills.”
Overdoses from stimulants laced with fentanyl have spiked 50-fold since 2010, according to an article published in
Fentanyl-laced pot, however, doesn’t seem to be a known trend. Dr.
Hill said that even if marijuana or other drugs were being laced with fentanyl, authorities aren’t going to test them for fentanyl. He added that if someone unknowingly gave fentanyl to a friend, who then died, police and prosecutors aren’t going to target the friend because they are focused on the traffickers.
Drug traffickers “don’t like to come to
“We want to go after that guy who had 50,000 pills, that were sent to 10 schools and killed 10 kids,” Hill said. “That’s the objective.”
Do mandatory sentences deter crime?
It’s not the first time state lawmakers have added mandatory minimum sentences for drug crimes.
The bill has garnered support from Idaho’s law enforcement community, including
“It is rare that chiefs, sheriffs, line officers and prosecutors agree on anything, and unfortunately, fentanyl is the thing that has brought us all together,”
But those who’ve used drugs, or have family members who’ve used drugs, had concerns.
“I wish my son would have had the opportunity to be rehabilitated instead of incarcerated,” Mansfield said.
Criminal justice experts have increasingly pushed back against the use of mandatory minimum sentences. The
The Prison Policy Initiative, a nonprofit focused on criminal justice reform, published a briefing last month that said mandatory minimum prison sentences were ineffective.
“There is a genuine crisis going on right now — fentanyl is very dangerous and people are dying because of it,” Bertram said. “But I think lawmakers on both sides of the aisle see an excuse and an opportunity to score some political points by ratcheting up punishments even though it’s not going to do anything to stop the problem.”
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