A North Carolina man faces charges of assault with intent to kill for exposing two detectives and a sheriff's deputy to opioids—possibly fentanyl—during a traffic stop on January 5. One detective reportedly lost consciousness after exposure to the drugs. Given the recent misleading reports of police overdosing by simply touching fentanyl, it's worth taking a closer look at cases like this.
The New Hanover County Sheriff's Office put out a press release on Friday describing the arrest. The suspect, Lewis Rudolph Brown Drayton, 37, was a passenger in a vehicle pulled over by deputies on Interstate 40 as part of a drug investigation. Drayton allegedly responded by attempting to toss drugs out of the vehicle's window. Two detectives and a deputy approaching the vehicle were "exposed to a powerful and highly addictive opioid drug," according to the release. One detective had a reaction and lost consciousness at the scene. He was administered Narcan, which reverses opioid overdoses, and the three were taken to the hospital and treated. He has since been released. The sheriff's office is testing the drug to find out if there was fentanyl in it.
