Does Drug Distribution Become Homicide When Someone Suffers A Fatal Overdose?

One of the most disturbing phone calls someone can get is from a family member announcing that he or she is in police custody and is being accused of drug crimes.  Sometimes the family launches into “eye of the hurricane” clarity in the midst of a cyclone of fears and worst-case scenarios.  They raise money for a bail bond and contact a criminal defense lawyer, and the detained family member must only wait a short time before seeing the outside world again and breaking his or her silence.  By the time the defendant has posted bail, all parties involved have thought of ways in which it could be worse.  A far worse phone call is one that notifies the family of a family member’s fatal drug overdose.  Drug crime cases that involve a fatal overdose can result in more severe penalties than ordinary drug distribution cases; this is not simply a little bit worse than simple possession.  If you are facing criminal charges for a felony drug offense, contact a Tampa drug crime lawyer.

South Florida Man Gets Prison Sentence for Drug Delivery Resulting in Death

On Christmas Eve in 2023, a young man who was staying at his parents’ house for the holidays hailed a rideshare ride and traveled to buy pills from Gito St. Fort at St. Fort’s apartment in West Palm Beach.  The next day, the man’s parents found him dead of a drug overdose at their Palm Beach home.  Drug capsules found at the scene traced positive for cocaine and fentanyl, the same drugs that tested positive on the decedent’s toxicology reports.

St. Fort faced criminal charges for drug delivery resulting in death.  He pleaded guilty, and in January 2025, a federal court sentenced him to 320 months in prison.  The sentencing range for drug delivery resulting in death is 20 years to life.  St. Fort is one of five defendants indicted on this charge in Florida in 2024.

What Protections Do Good Samaritan Laws Provide?

Getting charged with drug delivery resulting in death is frightening, but it is only the worst-case scenario.  In all of the Florida cases last year, the defendants engaged in large scale drug distribution, and the buyers were alone at home when they overdosed.  If you are present when someone overdoses, you are saving not only the person who overdosed but also yourself if you call 911.  Good Samaritan laws protect you from criminal prosecution for drug crimes in this situation.  Likewise, if abstaining from drugs or alcohol was a condition of your probation or parole, you are not at risk of revocation of your probation or parole if you call to get medical assistance for someone else.

Contact Tampa Criminal Defense Attorney Bryant Scriven

A criminal defense lawyer can help you if you are facing criminal charges for drug crimes after someone who was present suffered a drug overdose.  Contact Scriven Law in Tampa, Florida to schedule a consultation.

Sources:

justice.gov/usao-sdfl/pr/february-2024-one-defendant-pled-guilty-and-five-others-have-been-charged-distributing#:~:text=Pursuant%20to%20Title%2021%2C%20United,a%20maximum%20sentence%20of%20life.

local10.com/news/local/2025/01/22/man-sentenced-to-over-2-decades-in-prison-over-deadly-drugs-in-south-florida/