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Whenever I see a young person on the Cherokee Scout’s obituary pages with no cause of death listed, I get a lump in my throat. Because I fear that person, like so many others, was lost due to illegal drug use.
Tragically, that’s becoming all too common in North Carolina. A new study reveals that the Tar Heel State has the fifth-highest drug overdose death rate among young adults ages 15-24 from 2019-23.
Personal injury lawyers H&P Law analyzed drug overdose death data from all 50 states from those four years, sourced from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control & Prevention WONDER database. By evaluating average deaths per 100,000 residents ages 15–24, the study identifies the states most affected by fatal overdoses among young adults. Visit courtroomproven.com to learn more.
The four states with the highest overdose death rates are California, Texas, Florida and Washington; the states where the fewest overdose deaths occurred are South Dakota, Hawaii, Montana and Delaware. Neighboring Tennessee ranks as the 15th-highest state, while neighboring Georgia comes in at 16th.
North Carolina ranks fifth with an annual average of 62.55 deaths per 100,000 residents ages 15–24, 92.5% higher than the national average of 32.5. The highest number of deaths occurred in 2022 with 319 incidents, while the lowest was in 2019 with 181 incidents.
Every one of those numbers represents a family that has lost a loved one.
The Cox family knows that feeling of loss all too well after the Sept. 26 death of 19-year-old Kloie MatteAnne. While autopsy results are still pending, the Scout has been told that opioid drugs were being used the night of her tragic death.
I felt that sense of loss more than two years ago, when my son, Ian, died. He was alone when it happened, so I have no way of knowing what he went through before leaving this world. And, like with other families, I will forever wonder what I could have done – should have done – to prevent it from happening.
Since then, my commitment to making sure readers know how easy it can be for good kids to get caught up in a life they can’t get out of has only increased.
In North Carolina, a drug dealer can be charged with felony “death by distribution” if they illegally sell or distribute certain controlled substances that cause a user’s death, including fentanyl. Legislation passed in 2019, and expanded in 2023, significantly broadened the ability of prosecutors to bring these charges.
Without question, these laws are needed, in our state and others. There must be accountability and justice for the criminals who infest our otherwise beautiful communities, bringing with them death by needle or pipe, snuffing out generations for the sake of greed.
Yes, the person using the drug made a choice, and a fatally bad one, but someone first got them hooked, and someone else kept them supplied. Those people must be punished and made an example of to warn other potential dealers to stay away from the place we call home.
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While that sad story is being played out, the Scout has also shared a much more uplifting message. Nell Britt, a beloved 78-year-old Murphy resident battling cancer, was facing the foreclosure of her longtime home due to $4,759.85 in unpaid legal fees until the community found out and stepped up to help.
While Britt faced a foreclosure auction in November for unpaid legal fees, a Go Fund Me effort raised $14,625 in only a few days, lifting her burden. Murphy resident Valori Cassel started the successful fundraiser, and Robert Garland of Hiwassee Dam deserves credit for bringing this matter to the public’s attention.
This incident demonstrates what I love most about living and working in Cherokee County. Yes, people have their differences, but when one of our own is in need, we will move heaven and earth to help them out. In these times, there is no us vs. them, left vs. right, local vs. visitor; it’s just about loving our neighbor, like it says right there in the Good Book.
David Brown is publisher of the Cherokee Scout. Call him with comments and questions at 828-837-5122 or email dbrown@cherokeescout.com.