Some may see no problem with these laws. Partly because of rhetoric from the Trump administration, people tend to think that the drug supply is controlled by shady cartel figures and ruthless dealers who are stationed on American street corners.

The reality is far more complex. People who supply drugs are often friends or family members of those who overdose and often use drugs themselves. In a national survey, more than two in five people who reported having sold drugs also said they meet the criteria for a substance use disorder . Another analysis of drug-induced homicide news stories, conducted by the Health in Justice Action Lab at Northeastern University, found that 50 percent of people who were charged under drug-induced homicide laws were either friends, caretakers, partners or family members. Drug transactions are not as simple as buyer and seller.

All of this nuance is not captured in existing legislation. In Rhode Island , if someone were to give drugs to a friend in exchange for food or a place to stay for the night, that person could be charged if their friend fatally overdosed. The law criminalizes the exchange of anything of value for drugs , regardless of whether someone is a full-time dealer or merely passing drugs on. In other states, multiple people have been charged in the deaths of people they merely shared drugs with.

Proponents say that because these laws have good Samaritan provisions — which protect from criminal consequence those who seek emergency medical assistance at the scene of a suspected drug overdose — they will not discourage people from calling 911 to report an overdose. However, while studies have shown that knowledge of good Samaritan protections is associated with a willingness to call 911 in the event of an overdose, people are still afraid to call because of fear they will be charged. In Vermont, the state health department found in 2018 that fewer than 40 percent of people who requested a refill of naloxone reported calling 911 . In the likely event that drug-induced homicide laws escalate such fears and prevent bystanders from calling 911, these laws will actually increase the rates of fatal overdose among those they are trying to protect.

A 2018 study of drug users in Baltimore found that those who sold drugs were 69 percent more likely to have witnessed an overdose in the past six months . Given that those who sell drugs are more likely to witness — and therefore be in a position to intervene — in the event of an overdose, these laws might be especially damaging and counterproductive. Adding a good Samaritan provision to a bill that is aimed to criminalize is hardly reassuring.