Fentanyl trafficking law in effect
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Fentanyl is estimated to be 80 times as potent as morphine and hundreds of times more potent than heroin, according to the Centers for Disease Control.
Anyone caught trafficking the powerful opioid fentanyl in Massachusetts will face up to 20 years in state prison under a new law that takes effect Tuesday.
In November, the Legislature passed and Gov. Charlie Baker signed a bill to make trafficking the synthetic opiate a crime punishable by up to 20 years in prison. Fentanyl is "estimated to be 80 times as potent as morphine and hundreds of times more potent than heroin," according to the Centers for Disease Control.
Distributing and possessing the synthetic drug is already illegal without a prescription, but the new crime of trafficking will punish offenders with up to 20 years in prison for trafficking more than 10 grams.
Attorney General Maura Healey pushed for the new crime, citing several cases of fentanyl being mixed with heroin to provide an often fatal boost in potency.
"Fentanyl is claiming the lives of people across our state. This new law gives law enforcement the tools they need to prosecute those who traffic this dangerous drug," Healey said in a statement. "More and more, law enforcement is finding heroin laced with this powerful synthetic opioid or being sold in its pure form. This new law will help us combat trafficking and help keep communities safe."
According to the National Forensic Laboratory Information System, state and local labs in the U.S. identified fentanyl in 4,642 cases in 2014, up from 945 in 2013.
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