3 opioid overdose deaths lead prosecutors to murder charges

MANTEO, N.C. (AP) – North Carolina prosecutors are joining a national trend in fighting opioid overdose deaths – charging drug dealers with murder.

The Virginian-Pilot of Norfolk, Virginia, reports two eastern North Carolina prosecutors recently decided independently to pursue murder cases after three people died of opioid overdoses.

Three people have been charged in the two cases in Hyde and Dare counties.

National District Attorneys Association president-elect Mike Freeman says prosecutors across the country are charging suspected drug dealers with murder or manslaughter after fatal overdoses.

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