An Iowan who gives someone a lethal dose of fentanyl — even if they unknowingly supplied it within another substance — could face a first-degree murder sentence under a bill that advanced in the House Thursday.
Supporters of the bill say someone who takes another person's life with fentanyl should receive the highest degree of penalty, while opponents say the bill could penalize teens who could have accidentally given someone else a drug containing fentanyl that led to death.
House File 365 would sentence someone who delivered, dispensed or provided fentanyl to another person that resulted in their death from consuming the drug to first-degree murder, which is a class a felony punishable by life in prison without parole.
The most recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports Iowa had 498 drug overdose deaths between November 2021 and November 2022, including 223 deaths that involved a synthetic opioid.
Rep. Brian Meyer, D-Des Moines, didn't sign off on the bill because he said there should be something in the legislation making sure those who unintentionally give someone a lethal dose of fentanyl are carefully considered.
"No doubt it should be a very similar punishment, however, class A is life without parole, and I think if you unintentionally give somebody fentanyl, that's a different conversation," Meyer said.
The same bill passed in the Iowa House last year, 86-12.
Rep. Jon Dunwell, R-Newton, said he introduced the legislation after hearing Iowa mom Shannon Allen's story about her daughter Kristen (Allen) Ewing's death in 2023 because she was given a drug that ended up being a lethal dose of fentanyl.
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"(I) definitely appreciate the movement we've made with enhanced penalties through the process, but first-degree murder would also clarify and remove any ambiguity over what we're dealing with here," Dunwell said.
Gov. Kim Reynolds in 2023 signed a law that raised penalties for drug crimes involving a minor or leading to injury or death and added stronger sentences for manufacturing, delivering or possessing fentanyl.
