Fentanyl is killing New Yorkers at a frightening pace, and the legislature must act now on bills to end the carnage. That was the message from a bipartisan group of Suffolk officials at a rally Friday imploring state leaders to enact four bills, including Chelsey's Law, they hope will turn the tide on the deadly drug epidemic.
"Suffolk residents are dying at the rate of more than one per day from Fentanyl," said County Executive Edward Romaine at the Hauppauge rally, which featured more than a dozen activists and the families of overdose victims. "Fentanyl is so powerful, just one dose will kill you, and it's happening so much, it's really frightening," Romaine told the crowd.
Among the speakers making the case for stronger drug laws were the parents of Chelsey Murray, a 31-year-old Lake Grove woman who died from Fentanyl poisoning. Chelsey's Law, which was stripped by the Democrat leaders of assembly and senate from Gov. Kathy Hochul's budget resolution, would increase penalties for those who knowingly sell drugs that can kill you. "Who are they protecting, the dealers or all the people who are dying?" Gene Murray wondered. "The legislature needs to put a stop to this. We can't keep adding to the list of people who are dying from illegal drugs."
Among the rally participants was Marge Kochman of Port Jefferson, who lost two sons to Fentanyl. "Far too many lives are being lost to the flood of drugs coming from China. The evil Democrats won't change the laws; they won't close the border where the drugs are coming in; they don't care about all the people who are dying," Kochman said.
State Senator Mario Mattera singled out the state officials by name who are blocking the bills he and other Republicans have sponsored to combat the drug scourge. "Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins and Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie: you pulled the Fentanyl bill from the budget; you are blocking the laws we need to protect our citizens. It's time you stop the bleeding," Mattera said.
Also appearing at the rally was Assemblyman Joseph DeStefano, who sponsored one of the bills called for by the Suffolk Legislative Delegation. "You can sell Fentanyl and other illegal drugs that kill people, and the district attorney can't charge you with murder," DeStefano noted. "You can be caught with up to eight ounces of Fentanyl, enough to kill hundreds of thousands of people, and you won't be held on bail thanks to the Democrat laws. The deaths can no longer be ignored; the Democrats have to get on board with these bills."
Senator Dean Murray explained another law that is part of the legislative package: "Xylazine, also known as Tranq, is a powerful sedative for large animals. Drug dealers are mixing it with God knows what else, and people are dying. Currently, it's not listed as a controlled substance. My bill will change that while still allowing access to veterinarians who need it."
According to Alan Bode, the chief assistant filling in at the rally for Suffolk District Attorney Raymond Tierney, New York lags far behind other states when it comes to drug laws. "Death by Dealer" laws exist in 29 states, said Bode, who noted that 18% of autopsies on OD victims show Xylazine in their system. He pointed out the many deaths of children in Suffolk who were exposed to illegal drugs and ticked off the number of trips to Albany and the rallies Suffolk officials have participated in to lobby for more powerful laws. "People OD in our county every single day, yet nothing gets done." Other bills referenced by Bode would require bail for drug dealers and allow payments from the Crime Victims Fund to help families pay for the funerals of people who die from drugs.
In April, Tierney announced a guilty plea from Jaquan Casserly, 34, of Holbrook, the dealer who sold the drugs that killed Chelsey Murray. He was charged with Criminal Sale of a Controlled Substance in the Third Degree. He had a prior drug arrest on his record and is facing 10 years in prison. "We can't ask for bail for these drug sales, Bode said. "It's ridiculous."
Joining a number of grieving drug overdose families and activists at the rally were officials from both sides of the political aisle, including Kevin McCaffrey, Presiding Officer of the Suffolk Legislature, his fellow legislators Nick Caracappa, Steve Flotteron, Leslie Kennedy, James Mazzarella, Anthony Piccarillo, and Dominick Thorne, Suffolk Comptroller John Kennedy, Assemblywoman Jodi Giglio, Brookhaven Supervisor Dan Panico, Babylon Supervisor Rich Schaffer, a representative of Sheriff Errol Toulon, and various members of local law enforcement.