A flood of fentanyl

Lethal overdoses of an illicit form of fentanyl, a synthetic opioid used for pain treatments, are on the rise in Arkansas.

The drug, which is deadly in very small amounts, is appearing in fake pills as well as street drugs, like cocaine, heroin and ecstasy. The latest data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicates that fatal overdoses increased more than 40% in Arkansas between 2019 and 2020 — largely driven by an increase in fentanyl.

Convicting those who sell the drug is also difficult. In the case of deadly overdoses, prosecutors must tie the victim to the dealer or source of the drug and prove that the lethal fentanyl dose was distributed by that individual. As little as 2 milligrams can be fatal, the CDC says.

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette federal courts reporter Dale Ellis and Chris Givens, deputy criminal chief for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Little Rock, join Capitol & Scott to discuss the fentanyl crisis, what is driving it and how authorities are working overtime to try to stop its spread.

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