WASHINGTON—The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation held a hearing titled Interdicting Illicit Drug Trafficking: A view from the Front Lines on Wednesday, February 26, where ranking member Senator Maria Cantwell (D-WA), joined by Spokane Police Chief Kevin Hall, testified on the impacts of fentanyl in Washington State and the need to improve drug detection and interception along transportation corridors.
The Senate’s joint economic committee estimated the opioid crisis cost the U.S. more than $1.5 trillion in 2020 alone.
Sen. Cantwell shared that the ten states with the highest number of drug-related overdoses all host major intermodal hubs, including Washington State, which is up 14% in drug-related overdoses in just the last year.
According to the Washington State Department of Health, since 2019, annual drug overdose deaths in Washington State have tripled from 1,259 to 3,485 as of 2023. Opioid related deaths comprised 828 of the total drug-related deaths in 2019; whereas in 2023 that count was 2,819.
Seattle had its largest coordinated drug trafficking bust last October when 600 officers from 10 different states disrupted a violent drug trafficking gang, resulting from a wiretap investigation intercepting a shipment of more than 40 pounds fentanyl into the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
In January 2023, law enforcement busted another drug ring at SeaTac discovering more than 400,000 fentanyl pills in a checked baggage from drug couriers. They were later arrested in Arizona.
In 2024 the Burien Police Department and King County Sheriff’s Department seized more than one million fentanyl pills, as well as meth and heroin, in a semi-truck enroute to Washington from Southern California.
Sen. Cantwell said Wednesday that we must give law enforcement more tools to stop the flow of these drugs into the U.S.
“The supply chain is clear, the Chinese triad sells precursor chemicals to Mexican drug cartels hidden on ships and air cargos and cartels make fentanyl and smuggle it into the Unites States,” said Cantwell Wednesday. “They hide fentanyl in personal vehicles, commercial trucks, buses, trains, planes, and even on unmanned areal vehicles. This is a danger to our national security and our transportation security.”
Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas), Chair of the committee, criticized the former Biden Administration’s open border policy claiming that it led to an influx in “illegal aliens,” drug smuggling, sex trafficking, and countless loss of American lives. He followed this by praising the Trump administration’s crackdown on border control, stating that it led to a historic seizing of illegal drugs.
Last year Sen. Cantwell fought for more non-intrusive inspection technologies at U.S. Customs and Borders.
Spokane Police Chief Kevin Hall, who has more than 30 years working in law enforcement, testified firsthand on his experience with the drug epidemic in Eastern Washington – in what he calls the “superhighways” for drug distribution.
In Spokane, the second largest city in Washington State, the opioid-related overdose rate surpasses the state average. The Spokane Fire Department’s calls for drug-related overdoses have increased by 30% within just the last year.
The Spokane Medical Examiner’s Office recorded at least 346 opioid-related deaths last year, more than 75% involved fentanyl.
Chief Hall said Wednesday that his department allocated more and more resources to combat open air drug use every year.
“Fentanyl’s impacts stems from its potency, 40-50 times more lethal than heroin, and its alarming accessibility,” said Chief Hall. “I know that most fentanyl enters the U.S. from legal ports of entry, concealed in commercial cargo trucks, passenger vehicles, trailers, and RV’s.”
A mother, Jena Ehlinger, also shared a story about her son Jake, 20, who died from fentanyl overdose in their home state of Texas.
Ehlinger describer her son as a “bundle of joy” since the day that he was born. He was into sports, playing football at the University of Texas where he studied Finance. The pressure of school and football led him to experiment with drugs.
Ehlinger was in Mexico when she got the news that her son had died from an accidental overdose.
“Do not think it could not be your kid,” said Ehringer. “I would never believe in a million years that Jake would die from fentanyl poisoning, like this is happening every day to teenagers and young adults. Don’t think this couldn’t happen in you family because it could. “
House Bill No. 6, which passed into law in 2023, now prosecutes those found guilty of lacing drugs with fentanyl with murder.
Author: Kienan Briscoe
