Criminals Before Public Safety: Dem California Lawmakers Kill These Bills To Crack Down On Deadly Fentanyl Dealers

However, most of these bills were either weakened or defeated this week, signaling that the state's progressive lawmakers continue to prioritize reducing criminal penalties for drug-related offenses.

Overdose deaths have risen in California, prompting the State Assembly's public safety committee to block two bills on Thursday that sought to impose harsher penalties on Fentanyl dealers.

One bill aimed to strengthen punishments for dealers responsible for causing death or severe injury by selling Fentanyl. The other targeted those found possessing a significant amount of the drug, enough to kill thousands.

The committee also weakened a proposed ban on dealers carrying firearms before passing it along with another bill that would increase penalties for Fentanyl trafficking on social media.

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May 01, 2023

In response to the hearing, Assembly Republican leader James Gallagher stated, "Despite all the talk, the extremist legislators who opposed these bills guaranteed that innocent Californians will continue to die, victims of drug dealers profiting off poisoning our communities."

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He added, "These bills were not criminalizing addiction, returning to the 'war on drugs,' or any other lie told by the pro-fentanyl lobbyists. They were reasonable, bipartisan proposals to save lives."

Despite the rising death toll from Fentanyl, California Democrats, who hold a majority in the state legislature and government, remain committed to rolling back criminal penalties for drug-related crimes.

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Their stance persists even as public pressure mounts for lawmakers to address the Fentanyl epidemic, which has claimed more lives in California than in any other state.

The Assembly's public safety committee only agreed to debate the bills targeting Fentanyl dealers after Republican lawmakers threatened to force a floor vote on the measures last week.

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On Tuesday, the California Senate public safety committee, which is predominantly progressive, voted down a bipartisan bill for the second time. The bill would have allowed law enforcement to inform Fentanyl dealers of the potentially lethal consequences of their actions. If the dealers were to sell Fentanyl again and cause death, they could face second-degree murder charges—a similar law for drunk drivers has been in place for years.

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During Thursday's hearing, several progressive lawmakers defended their position against accusations of inaction on the Fentanyl crisis. They unfavorably compared the proposed bills to the war on drugs and advocated for "harm reduction" programs as a more effective alternative to incarcerating Fentanyl dealers.

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"We are doing something," said Assemblywoman Mia Bonta (D.), wife of California Attorney General Rob Bonta. She highlighted California's $61 billion investment in harm reduction programs, including widespread distribution of overdose medication and test strips that can detect the presence of Fentanyl in other drugs. "Not enough, but we have been doing something."

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Public safety committee chair Reggie Jones-Sawyer (D.) pointed to Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom's recent directive for California police officers to coordinate crackdowns on Fentanyl traffickers. Newsom, who has not commented on the Fentanyl legislation, left the state just ahead of the hearings.

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Assemblyman Jim Patterson, the only Republican to present a bill to the committee, criticized Democrats' harm reduction approach as insufficient. "The reality is that we have dealers in Fresno with 2,000 pills, that the worst you can do is a misdemeanor," he told the panel. "They're out in two days. If we really cared about the addicts, wouldn't we also care that their dealers are out on the street, churning more and more?"