ALBANY – Following a Poughkeepsie City police officer coming in contact with fentanyl during an arrest and suffering near-fatal effects, State Senator Rob Rolison says he will introduce legislation that would make it a crime should a first responder or corrections officer come in contact with the deadly drug.
He said his measure will put criminals on notice: “If you carry fentanyl and recklessly expose a first responder or correction officer to it, you will be guilty of aggravated reckless endangerment, a felony that could carry up to 15 years in prison.
Rolison said in his almost 30 years of serving the community as a police officer, “I never saw a drug epidemic as dangerous as the fentanyl scourge. First responders face potential exposure, sickness or death from this poison each time they attempt an arrest or transport a suspect in a confined space such as an ambulance. Criminals no longer fear consequences of any kind.”
The Republican lawmaker said he encourages his colleagues on both sides of the political aisle to “support public safety by fighting this drug with the full force of the law.”
