Fentanyl suspected cause of overdose death

PRIEST RIVER – Police responded to a possible overdose death Saturday, April 6 at 2:15 according to Priest River Chief Drew McLain. In an update to city council at their general meeting Monday, April 7, Chief McLain said police responded to a call from the 200 block of 7th Street for an unresponsive 36-yearold male. The man was already deceased when law enforcement arrived, McLain said.

Though the cause of death is still under investigation by the Bonner County coroner, McLain said fentanyl was the likely culprit based on the deceased’s history or drug use and paraphernalia found at the scene.

“It’s just a horrible situation,” McLain said to council members. “No matter a person’s personal feelings on addictions, it’s somebody’s kid, it’s their loved one. I think we should be looking at these incidents with a sense of compassion.”

In a phone interview Tuesday, April 8 McLain said the last time anyone saw the deceased was around 9 p.m. Friday, April 4. He estimated that time of death was around 11:30 p.m.

“We’re still waiting on the toxicology report to come back from the coroner, and that usually takes around two to three weeks,” McLain said.

McLain encouraged those at the council meeting to become familiar with Naloxone/Narcan and how to administer it. Naloxone is a medicine that rapidly reverses an opioid overdose. It has no effect on someone who does not have opioids in their system and cannot work on someone who is already deceased because of an overdose.

When asked, McLain said Priest River police officers have administered Narcan twice in the past year. One incident occurred a couple of weeks ago when officer Scott Kennedy was off duty getting a milkshake at McDonald’s in Newport. He was recognized by staff who informed Kennedy that a man was having an opioid overdose in his car in the parking lot. According to McLain, Kennedy was able to administer Narcan and save the man’s life.

“Unfortunately, it’s (fentanyl) cheaply made and highly addictive,” McLain said. “We talk to people in our community who are struggling with addiction.

They know this could kill them, but they can’t stop.”

McLain also stressed that people should call 911 immediately without fear of arrest if they think someone is having an opioid overdose.

According to Idaho’s Good Samaritan law 37-2739C, “A person acting in good faith who seeks medical assistance for any person experiencing a drug-related medical emergency shall not be charged or prosecuted for possession of a controlled substance, for using or being under the influence of a controlled substance, or for using or possessing with intent to use drug paraphernalia.”

“Please call if someone is in distress and you think it’s a drug overdose, no matter the drug,” McLain said.

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