Public health and criminal justice are two opposing strategies that politicians have used to combat the fentanyl illness. Lt. Governor. this time Harris Jones is aiming for the latter, according to Burt Jones.
A Jones-backed bill introduced by state senator Russ Goodman, R-Cogdell, would establish a separate plan of offenses for morphine possession and trafficking, with long, stringent sentences and fines than the state code’s current one.
According to Goodman,” We’re trying to pounce a little fear into the hearts of the people who are invading our areas.”
Anyone who has between one and four grams of a compound containing fentanyl may spend up to eight years in prison under the laws of Georgia and the United States. Goodman’s proposal may reduce the minimum gram count to 250 grams and reduce the maximum prison term from eight to ten. Also, anyone who consumes less than 250 grams of a material that contains the chemical opioid may face prison sentences of up to five years.
According to the proposed proposal, fentanyl trafficking claims that stop at 4 ounces will result in a 10-year required minimum sentence and a$ 75,000 fine. On the high end, trafficking offenses involving weights greater than 28 grams would result in a fine of$ 750,000 and 35 years in prison.
Goodman expressed his hope that stiffer methadone penalties will help stop drug trafficking and make it easier for dealers to share information about various criminals involved in the illegal trade up the chain.
According to the Drug Enforcement Administration, as little as 2 grams of fentanyl can become fatal to some people.
Fentanyl is a nuclear bomb, according to Goodman, “if another illegal drugs are a BB weapons.”
Although Goodman’s initiative has received bipartisan support, a few Democratic lawmakers expressed reservations about the required fees.
The necessary fees were echoed by the worst of the country’s drug conflict, which started under the Nixon administration, according to State Sen.  , Josh McLaurin, D-Sandy Springs, who voted in opposition to the estimate.
The view under former governor was changed to the General Assembly. Nathan Deal, who sought to reform Georgia’s criminal justice system.
Goodman said he anticipates small changes to the act, and the bill has since been moved to the House for discussion.
The decision comes as exploratory research indicates that drug overdose deaths are declining significantly. The , Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , found 87, 000 overdose incidents from , October 2023 , to , September 2024, a roughly 24 % decrease from the same period last year. Fentanyl and another dangerous substances, such as heroin and methamphetamine, are included in that number.
The initial results might represent a turning point in the morphine problems.
Additionally, Donald Trump is targeted by Democratic state legislators for fentanyl prostitution. The president cited concerns about the production of synthetic opioids from Mexico and Canada as part of the justification for enforcing tariffs on products from those nations. Additionally, he imposed a 20 % tax on imports from China, which was instituted to prevent fentanyl production.
However, experts in the field of public health cautioned that the method proposed in costs like SB 79 might not be as effective at reducing drug overdoses and assisting those with substance use disorders.
” Reducing the supply is obviously important, but what we’ve seen repeatedly is that if we really reduce the supply, we frequently see a substitution,” said Emory University’s Rollins School of Public Health’s Stephen Patrick, couch of the , Department of Health Policy and Management.
According to Patrick, there needs to be a emphasis on public health through more exposure to opioid turnaround medication and drug therapy.
For instance, a law passed last month made naloxone, an opioid overdose medication, more readily available in public houses, classrooms, and colleges.
There are” two factors to this coin,” Patrick said. One is intended specifically for those who have a substance use disorder. We should be ultimately putting them in therapy, which is a pressing need.
The amendments to a law passed last year that established a new type of felony aggravated involuntary manslaughter that would apply to drug traffickers and marketers are expanded by Goodman’s plan.
He claimed that SB 79 would add another dimension to the varied strategy to combat the fentanyl problems.
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The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 2025.
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