Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
- Rep. Matthew Gwynn, also Roy's police chief, addresses Utah's rising fentanyl issue.
- Gwynn sponsors HB87 to elevate distribution offenses of 100 grams to a felony.
- He also highlights problems with unlicensed drivers.
SALT LAKE CITY — As one of a group of Utah lawmakers who are pushing a group of bills targeting public safety and border issues, Rep. Matthew Gwynn, R-Farr West, has a unique perspective.
Also serving as Roy's police chief, he says he's seen fentanyl use increase in recent years.
"We are generally seeing an increase in the amount of tablets and the amount of powder that is being seized over the last couple of years," Gwynn explained. "I'm wanting the state to actually take a more active and bigger role in preventing and prosecuting the trafficking of fentanyl."
Gwynn is sponsoring HB87, which would automatically elevate offenses involving the distribution of 100 grams or more of the drug to a first-degree felony.
"The fact that they're carrying amounts of fentanyl in their cars that can kill thousands and thousands of people across the Wasatch Front, that's why I want to treat this differently because it is different," Gwynn said.
Gwynn says he's also received data from federal partners that quantities of the drug coming into Utah have gone up in recent years. He says the drug typically goes from China to Mexico in powder form, where it's later pressed into pills and brought across the U.S. border.
"It's almost terroristic in nature when you can take the lives of over 200 people a year," Gwynn said. "That's pretty significant. And so we want to treat it differently than we treat these other drugs. At least that's the message we're trying to send."
Unlicensed drivers
Gwynn added that a bill sponsored by Rep. Matt MacPherson, R-West Valley, targets a longtime issue.
"I can tell you in a 23-year career in law enforcement, we do have a problem with unlicensed driving in the state of Utah," Gwynn said, explaining that those offenders aren't necessarily illegal immigrants. "I can tell you that people who drive without a license continue to drive without a license."
Gwynn says Utah law as it is, makes it difficult to discourage people from driving without a license. He says officers typically can do little more than issue a citation.
"The other issue is, too, is how many of these people who are driving without a license are not carrying insurance," he added. "Like that's that's a concern, right?"
