Sen. Doug Mastriano (R-33)
One of the most difficult conversations I’ve had was when Laura Shanafelter told me about a harrowing call she received informing her that her son had passed at just 18 years old. As I listened to her recount the experience that no parent ever wants to endure, my heart dropped.
Not only had she lost her child at such a young age, Tyler was gone because the choice was made for him.
He struggled with substance abuse disorder but recognized he had a problem and tried to get clean. As the grip of drugs is strong no matter how committed someone is to breaking free, many people relapse in the process of conquering their addiction.
Tyler was no different. In his moment of weakness, he bought Percocet.
But instead, he received Percocet laced with fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opioid that is similar to morphine but is 50-100 times more potent. Just two milligrams of fentanyl can be a lethal dose.
It’s easier to produce and distribute than heroin, which makes it appealing to those who are willing to gamble with other people’s lives for their own profit.
Because of a drug dealer’s greed, Tyler died after using a counterfeit drug he never consented to putting in his body.
His life was taken from him while in the vulnerable place of trying to escape addiction.
Even worse – Tyler’s story is not uncommon.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there were more than 100,000 fentanyl and opioid related deaths in 2021, a 15% increase from 2020.
In Pennsylvania, from 2011 to 2021, the overdose death rate climbed from 6.2 per 100,000 people to 32.8 per 100,000 people. Pennsylvania’s death rate in 2023 was up to 44 per 100,000 people.
Since Laura shared her heartbreaking story with me, I have been working to pass legislation designed to prevent other families from facing the same tragedy.
In the last legislative session, a bill I sponsored in response to this disturbing crime passed in the Senate but never received a vote in the House of Representatives.
I have not forgotten Tyler and the legacy his loving mother is working hard to leave in his honor.
This week, the Senate passed my legislation – Senate Bill 92, known as Tyler’s Law.
My bill would impose tougher penalties on drug dealers who sell fentanyl resulting in a fatal overdose. An individual who sells or engages in a monetary transaction to distribute fentanyl resulting in a death would face a mandatory minimum 25-year sentence upon conviction.
While we want to target fentanyl dealers, we do not want to discourage people from seeking help for people who are overdosing.
To be sure that’s not the case, my bill stipulates that the mandatory minimum penalty would not apply to drug users who share drugs with friends or family members or to those who seek medical help for individuals who overdose.
It is my duty as a legislator to do everything I can to stem this ever-increasing scourge on our loved ones. It’s well past time to send a strong message that those fueling the opioid crisis will face severe consequences. With Tyler’s Law, we can help to prevent other families from experiencing that unimaginable loss.
Sen. Doug Mastriano represents the 33rd Senatorial District, covering all of Adams and Franklin counties.