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Senate refuses House changes to fentanyl-related homicide bill after debate over protections for witnesses and scope
Summary
The Virginia Senate declined to concur with the House substitute for Senate Bill 7-46 after members debated differences over age limits, whether fentanyl must be the sole cause of death, and the lack of a "safe harbor" for callers seeking medical help during an overdose.
Senate members voted 18-21 on Feb. 17 to reject the House substitute for Senate Bill 7-46, a bill addressing criminal liability in deaths involving fentanyl and other opioids.
The vote came after floor debate in which senators outlined major differences between the chamber versions. Senator Timothy McDougall (Senator from Hanover) moved that the Senate concur with the House substitute and described how the House language differed from the Senate-passed version: the House removed an age limitation, lowered the penalty to manslaughter rather than the Senate's higher penalty, and allowed fentanyl to be a contributing—not necessarily the sole—cause of death.
Senator Soraville (Eastern…
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