West Virginia Senate enhances drug penalties to felony
West Virginia’s Senate has passed a bill that would make it a felony to possess fentanyl and some other illegal drugs in the opioid-ravaged state
By JOHN RABY
Published - Feb 28, 2023, 03:27 PM ET
Last Updated - Jun 22, 2023, 06:58 PM EDT
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — West Virginia’s Senate passed a bill Tuesday that would make it a felony to possess fentanyl and some other illegal drugs in the opioid-ravaged state.
The bill passed on a 32-1 vote and now goes before the House of Delegates. The regular session ends March 11.
Republican Sen. Charles Trump, of Morgan County, said the idea behind enhancing penalties for drug possession from a misdemeanor is to move those cases from magistrate court to circuit court, where there are more resources and programs available, including drug treatment courts and supervised probation.
Besides fentanyl, the drugs designated in the bill are heroin, cocaine, PCP, LSD and methamphetamine.
