House approves criminal law changes aimed at fentanyl dealers, adds procedural reforms

The Indiana House on April 8 approved Senate Bill 324, a wide-ranging criminal law measure that revises penalties for fentanyl-related offenses, mandates hearings before release on bail for certain violent arrestees, and adds both sentencing aggravators and a new mitigator for defendants who sought substance use disorder treatment.

Representative Gina, who presented the bill, said the House worked to reduce penalties that the Senate had increased and to maintain proportionality while addressing fentanyl trafficking and other violent offenses. "So the our work here attempted to do that on Senate Bill 3 24," the presenter said, summarizing adjustments to sentencing levels and procedural changes.

Key changes described on the floor include: - Requiring hearings before judges for violent arrestees or repeat violent offenders before release on bail; - Permitting monitoring devices as a bail condition for certain domestic-violence defendants with prior violent convictions; - Creating sentencing aggravators including unlawful presence in the U.S. (listed as an aggravator in the bill) and dealing controlled substances to at least three different individuals in a 180-day period; - Adding a mitigator when a defendant has a diagnosed substance use disorder and has sought treatment; - Reclassifying fentanyl-related crimes by weight into levels (for example, any fentanyl-containing substance at a baseline level with higher levels for larger amounts) and raising the level for resisting law enforcement causing bodily injury from level 6 to level 5.

Representative Pierce, who said he voted no in committee, urged caution about relying solely on increased penalties to deter drug activity and emphasized the need for investment in prevention, treatment and public-health responses. "If we want to actually solve the scourge of fentanyl, you have to invest a lot of money... You have to have programs for prevention... a robust mental health and substance use treatment system," Pierce said.

Supporters including Representative Andrade and others urged the legislature to act in response to constituent losses and public-safety concerns. Andrade said, "Far too many Hoosiers lives have been taken by fentanyl. Friends and family members across the community are hurting. I believe that this piece of legislation helps ensure that we are addressing this issue." The bill also raised penalties for certain dealers and clarified definitions to address imitation firearms on school property.

The House recorded the bill's final passage by roll call: 90 ayes, 0 nays. The bill was described on the floor as having been narrowed from the Senate version and as part of the governor's public-safety priorities; the House added mitigators and narrower weight thresholds for fentanyl amounts.

The bill moves to the Senate for any further action required to reconcile differences between the chambers.