Massachusetts State Police detectives attached to the Hampden District Attorney’s office and local police have responded to eight overdose deaths in the last week — including 3 on Friday, 1 Jan, 2016 — in Holyoke and Chicopee in which victims are believed to have used drugs branded with the stamp “Hollywood.” …

“A 49-year-old Braintree narcotics trafficker arrested in New Bedford in possession of nearly 500 grams of Fentanyl was sentenced to serve six to six-and-a-half years in state prison last week, Bristol County District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn III announced. Robinson Paradis-Feliz pleaded guilty to an indictment charging him with Trafficking …

“A 35-year-old New Bedford fentanyl trafficker was sentenced to serve eight to 10 years in state prison on Friday in Fall River Superior Court, Bristol County District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn III announced. Ramon Genao pleaded guilty to an indictment charging him with Trafficking in Excess of 100 Grams of …

Poll results released Thursday by supporters of legislation to provide sanctioned spaces for people with substance use addiction to use drugs under supervision without the threat of criminal punishment found that more than two-thirds of Bay State voters are in favor of allowing municipalities to establish the so-called overdose prevention …

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, between 1999 and 2021, 645,000 people have died from opioid-related overdoses and almost 80,000 people in 2022 alone. In 2020 the national opioid dispense rate reached 43.3 per 100 people. One 2022 study found that counties with higher dispensing rates had …

According to data from the United States Sentencing Commission, punishment for trafficking Fentanyl in the United States is getting lighter in recent years. Simultaneously, the amount of fentanyl traffickers and fentanyl related overdose deaths have gone up dramatically. The Massachusetts Department of Health released data showing that Massachusetts opioid-related overdose …

“Agency Continues to Take Critical Steps to Reduce Drug Overdose Deaths Being Driven Primarily by Illicit Opioids. Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Narcan, 4 milligram (mg) naloxone hydrochloride nasal spray for over-the-counter (OTC), nonprescription, use – the first naloxone product approved for use without a prescription. Naloxone …

“A 29-year-old alleged Fentanyl trafficker was arrested late last week and nearly 200 grams of suspected Fentanyl was seized as a result of a months-long investigation by members of the Massachusetts State Police Bristol County Narcotics Unit assigned to District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn III’s office. During the last several …

“A lengthy drug trafficking and firearms investigation in western Massachusetts by a regional State Police task force and partner agencies culminated last month with eight arrests and the seizure of multiple kilograms of fentanyl and cocaine, three firearms, and more than $100,000 in suspected drug sale proceeds. The joint operation …