Charges of drug distribution can be very serious, especially when someone overdoses on the drug sold. One Virginia woman was recently charged with heroin distribution, after a man died from the heroin she allegedly sold him earlier this year.
A Special Agent on the Virginia Drug Task Force found heroin in the man’s system, and he claims that they were able to trace the drug back to the woman, who they claim sold it to him. The man was found unconscious in his apartment and was taken to the hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The woman was already facing charges of drug distribution and second degree murder after another man overdosed on the heroin she allegedly sold him. The federal statute allows for drug dealers to be charged for supplying the heroin involved in a lethal overdose. If the woman is found guilty of selling a lethal dose of heroin, she will be facing the state minimum of 20 years in prison.
The woman will be on trial for the first heroin death later this month. She also has a court appearance in May for the second charge.
Authorities are particularly concerned with a new type of heroin known as “Thermaflu,” which appears to be deadlier than other types of heroin. The Virginia Drug Task Force is doing everything in their power to prevent this new drug from hitting the streets. The drug has already killed at least 17 people in the Northeast region of the country. With the severity of the consequences, it is important for Virginia residents charged with drug distribution to know their defenses.
Source: WHAG, “Woman Charged in Second Overdose Death, New Heroin Called ‘Theraflu'” Merris Badcock, Jan. 28, 2014
