'The Data Is Shocking': CA Bill Aims To Stop Surge In Fentanyl Deaths

BANNING, CA — Another Inland Empire lawmaker has introduced state legislation aimed at nailing convicted drug dealers whose products kill. The bill is nearly identical to a failed version introduced in early 2021 by a Southwest Riverside County legislator, but the onslaught of grim fentanyl headlines may tip the scales this time around.

Nearly two years after Senate Bill 350 was introduced by Sen. Melissa Melendez (R-Lake Elsinore), it remains to be seen whether ongoing attention to the fentanyl crisis has garnered enough steam for passage of SB 13, which was introduced Dec. 5 by Sen. Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh (R-Yucaipa).

Dubbed Alexandra's Law, SB 13 would require a person convicted of distributing certain opiates and narcotics — including fentanyl — to read and sign a written advisory warning of the dangers such actions pose to human life. The documented paperwork would, in theory, make it easier for district attorneys up and down the state to successfully prosecute repeat offenders whose products kill.

The same type of written advisory is currently required for California's convicted drunken/drugged drivers, which is why repeat DUI offenders can be charged with murder when involved in fatal under-the-influence crashes. The state law is commonly known as the Watson rule.

Proponents of legislation like SB 13 say it's a necessary tool to combat an increasingly dangerous problem. Law enforcement agencies across the Golden State are urgently warning about fentanyl. Victims — often young people — are being duped by drug traffickers who sell fake oxycodone, Percocet, Valium and other alleged “medications” compounded in nonsterile conditions using the simplest of ingredients and tools such as powdered baby formula and a blender, according to law enforcement officials. Related: 'Our Kids Were Poisoned To Death': SoCal's Fentanyl Conversation

Fentanyl is also being mixed into other street drugs, and the synthetic opioid's pervasiveness comes down to money: Fentanyl is a very cheap drug to manufacture, so profits are big.

The end result is often deadly. Preliminary data show that in 2021, 5,722 of the 10,416 Californians who died from an overdose died from fentanyl, according to Ochoa Bogh's figures.

In Feb. 2021, Sen. Melendez introduced SB 350 and even called the legislation Alexandra's Law. The naming was in memory of Alexandra Capelouto who on Dec. 23, 2019, was found dead in her parents' Temecula home. The 20-year-old was on winter break from college and had gone online to buy oxycodone. The person she purchased from sold her a fake oxy pill that contained a lethal amount of fentanyl. Capelouto died not knowing she was ingesting fentanyl, according to prosecutors. Related: Temecula Woman's Fentanyl Death Leaves Supplier Facing 20 Years

Melendez's bill failed to garner enough bipartisan support, but Ochoa Bogh is hoping for a different outcome amid the statewide surge in fentanyl poisonings.

“Fentanyl-related deaths have swept my district and state recently,” Ochoa Bogh said. “As a mother, it’s heartbreaking to listen to families describe the tragic deaths of their loved ones. Meeting with Alexandra’s family and learning about her story compelled me to take action immediately and introduce SB 13 on the first day of the 2023-24 legislative session. We must join together, fight against these senseless deaths, and hold the individuals who knowingly distribute fentanyl accountable for the irreparable harm they cause.”

Not all prosecutors are waiting for a state law like SB 13. When sufficient evidence warrants, district attorneys in Orange and Riverside counties are already charging alleged drug dealers with murder in fatal fentanyl cases. Related: Riverside County Poisoning Death Helps Spark Change In OC

Synthetic opioids like fentanyl, which can be as much as 100 times more potent than morphine, are now the most common drugs involved in drug overdose deaths in the United States, Ochoa Bogh's office reported.

"In the Inland Empire, San Bernardino County saw a 930% increase in fentanyl-related deaths from 2018 through 2021. The number of fentanyl-related deaths increased yearly, with 30 reported in 2018, 74 in 2019, 227 in 2020, and 309 in 2021. There have been 415 fentanyl-related deaths so far in 2022 in Riverside County," Ochoa Bogh reported.

“The data is shocking," she said. "SB 13 is a critical next step in the fight against the drug poisonings sweeping through our communities and hopefully save lives like Alexandra’s."

Related story: Snapchat Sued By Temecula Family And Others Who Lost Kids To Fentanyl

The above photo was courtesy the Social Media Victims Law Center, socialmediavictims.org.