FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – WEDNESDAY, JAN. 20
Sen. Bethany Hall-Long
Rep. Tim Dukes
Contact:
Jesse Chadderdon, (302) 744-4282 or (302) 743-0945;
Stephanie Mantegna, (302) 577-8515
Sen. Bethany Hall-Long
Rep. Tim Dukes
Contact:
Jesse Chadderdon, (302) 744-4282 or (302) 743-0945;
Stephanie Mantegna, (302) 577-8515
Bi-partisan bills take aim at state’s heroin epidemic
A year after Delaware lawmakers made an unprecedented $4.5 million commitment to increasing addiction resources across Delaware, two new laws aimed at reducing overdose deaths have been proposed in the General Assembly.
House Bill 239 seeks to hold drug dealers further accountable for the damage they inflict on our communities by creating a new crime, “Drug Dealing – Resulting in Death,” a Class B felony punishable by 2 to 25 years in prison. Senate Bill 174 creates a Drug Overdose Fatality Review Commission to examine the circumstances of deaths resulting from prescription opioid, fentanyl and heroin overdoses and make recommendations to the state as to how to curtail them.
The bi-partisan legislation is being spearheaded by Sen. Bethany Hall-Long, D-Middletown, and Rep. Timothy Dukes, R-Laurel, and has the support of Attorney General Matt Denn and advocates throughout the addiction support community.
“These bills are an important part of a comprehensive state effort to better monitor the prescription and use of opioid drugs, and the illegal sale and misuse of prescription and illegal opioids,” Denn said.
“With an average of 15 overdose deaths a month in our state, we are losing more Delawareans to heroin and opioid drugs than we are in car crashes,” said Hall-Long, who co-chairs the Senate’s Behavioral and Mental Health Task Force. “It’s an epidemic that is tearing our families apart. Our efforts today show that tougher enforcement and providing the necessary recovery resources for those facing addiction are not mutually exclusive. We need to do both to solve this problem.”
Hall-Long’s legislation calls on the newly-created Drug Overdose Fatality Review Commission to operate similarly to the board the state has put in place to review the deaths of domestic violence and child abuse victims. It would cultivate data, identify common trends and make specific recommendations to the Department of Justice.
Dukes’ legislation, House Bill 239, is named after Brock Cerklefskie, who died of a heroin drug overdose last summer. Brock, a Dover High School graduate, had been battling drug addiction for a number of years when he started getting his life back on track after working for David G. Horsey & Sons road construction company in Laurel. In August, he relapsed and passed away. The family contacted Dukes to help get legislation enacted that would hold drug dealers and distributors to a higher accountability than they are now.
“I have personally known six families that have been devastated by drug addiction, including the family of Brock Cerklefskie,” Dukes said. “Brock represents the many individuals in Delaware who have lost their lives because of this terrible stronghold.
“When he died, his family turned to the justice system for closure, but the family was left with no help,” Dukes added. “There’s no provision in Delaware law that holds a drug dealer responsible in the event that the person they are selling the drugs to does, in fact, die. My bill will go after those drug dealers, like the one who sold the heroin to Brock, and hold them responsible for his untimely death.”
Cheryl Doucette, a member of the Cerklefskie family, said both legislative efforts will help keep Delaware’s most dangerous drug dealers off the streets.
“On behalf of the family, I am grateful for the efforts being made by Rep. Dukes and Sen. Hall-Long to ensure the heroin epidemic in Delaware is sufficiently addressed,” she said. “Our family hopes that another family never has to endure what we have gone through as a result of addiction and overdose. Drug dealers in Delaware must be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law and we believe these bills send a clear message that drug dealing in this state will be taken very seriously by our justice system.”
Sen. Ernesto Lopez, R-Lewes, the lead Republican Senate sponsor of SB 174, said he was pleased the General Assembly was coming together in a bi-partisan fashion to further tackle Delaware’s heroin problem.
“It’s important that we’re starting off this legislative session focused on this important issue that’s having an effect on the citizens of Delaware from New Castle to Sussex,” Lopez said. “These two bills are going to have an immediate positive impact on what we all know is an epidemic in Delaware.”
House Bill 239 seeks to hold drug dealers further accountable for the damage they inflict on our communities by creating a new crime, “Drug Dealing – Resulting in Death,” a Class B felony punishable by 2 to 25 years in prison. Senate Bill 174 creates a Drug Overdose Fatality Review Commission to examine the circumstances of deaths resulting from prescription opioid, fentanyl and heroin overdoses and make recommendations to the state as to how to curtail them.
The bi-partisan legislation is being spearheaded by Sen. Bethany Hall-Long, D-Middletown, and Rep. Timothy Dukes, R-Laurel, and has the support of Attorney General Matt Denn and advocates throughout the addiction support community.
“These bills are an important part of a comprehensive state effort to better monitor the prescription and use of opioid drugs, and the illegal sale and misuse of prescription and illegal opioids,” Denn said.
“With an average of 15 overdose deaths a month in our state, we are losing more Delawareans to heroin and opioid drugs than we are in car crashes,” said Hall-Long, who co-chairs the Senate’s Behavioral and Mental Health Task Force. “It’s an epidemic that is tearing our families apart. Our efforts today show that tougher enforcement and providing the necessary recovery resources for those facing addiction are not mutually exclusive. We need to do both to solve this problem.”
Hall-Long’s legislation calls on the newly-created Drug Overdose Fatality Review Commission to operate similarly to the board the state has put in place to review the deaths of domestic violence and child abuse victims. It would cultivate data, identify common trends and make specific recommendations to the Department of Justice.
Dukes’ legislation, House Bill 239, is named after Brock Cerklefskie, who died of a heroin drug overdose last summer. Brock, a Dover High School graduate, had been battling drug addiction for a number of years when he started getting his life back on track after working for David G. Horsey & Sons road construction company in Laurel. In August, he relapsed and passed away. The family contacted Dukes to help get legislation enacted that would hold drug dealers and distributors to a higher accountability than they are now.
“I have personally known six families that have been devastated by drug addiction, including the family of Brock Cerklefskie,” Dukes said. “Brock represents the many individuals in Delaware who have lost their lives because of this terrible stronghold.
“When he died, his family turned to the justice system for closure, but the family was left with no help,” Dukes added. “There’s no provision in Delaware law that holds a drug dealer responsible in the event that the person they are selling the drugs to does, in fact, die. My bill will go after those drug dealers, like the one who sold the heroin to Brock, and hold them responsible for his untimely death.”
Cheryl Doucette, a member of the Cerklefskie family, said both legislative efforts will help keep Delaware’s most dangerous drug dealers off the streets.
“On behalf of the family, I am grateful for the efforts being made by Rep. Dukes and Sen. Hall-Long to ensure the heroin epidemic in Delaware is sufficiently addressed,” she said. “Our family hopes that another family never has to endure what we have gone through as a result of addiction and overdose. Drug dealers in Delaware must be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law and we believe these bills send a clear message that drug dealing in this state will be taken very seriously by our justice system.”
Sen. Ernesto Lopez, R-Lewes, the lead Republican Senate sponsor of SB 174, said he was pleased the General Assembly was coming together in a bi-partisan fashion to further tackle Delaware’s heroin problem.
“It’s important that we’re starting off this legislative session focused on this important issue that’s having an effect on the citizens of Delaware from New Castle to Sussex,” Lopez said. “These two bills are going to have an immediate positive impact on what we all know is an epidemic in Delaware.”
###
Press Contacts
Scott Goss
Communications Director
(302) 744-4180
[email protected]
Dylan McDowell
Communications Assistant
(302) 744-4282
[email protected]
Scott Goss
Communications Director
(302) 744-4180
[email protected]
Dylan McDowell
Communications Assistant
(302) 744-4282
[email protected]