The Kansas Attorney General will ask the Kansas Sentencing Commission to create a new Sentencing Enhancement specifically for the crime of distribution of drugs if a death results. Also, resources to provide maximum assistance to county attorneys prosecuting any case involving fentanyl.
In 2022, the U. S. Drug Enforcement Agency recovered 50.6 million fentanyl pills and more than 5 tons of fentanyl powder, the equivalent to 379 million deadly doses. In Kansas, Illinois and Missouri alone, DEA recovered 671 pounds of fentanyl, an increase of 41% from the previous year. They say the epidemic in fentanyl trafficking and subsequent deaths must be addressed and those who are responsible held accountable.
Tony Mattivi, the nominee to be the next director of the Kansas Bureau of Investigation, says we may be on the cusp of a tidal wave with regard to fentanyl.
