Attorney General Jeff Sessions issued guidance to U.S. attorneys on using the death penalty for certain drug-related crimes.
Sessions pointed out the statutes that can be used to pursue capital punishment. Those include certain racketeering activities, gun deaths during drug trafficking crimes, dealing in "extremely large quantities of drugs," and other statutes.
Sessions also proposed other measures to fight the crisis — like designating an opioid coordinator in every U.S. district and further holding opioid manufacturers and distributors accountable for breaking the law.
The memo comes after President Donald Trump unveiled a plan Monday to combat the opioid epidemic, which includes a call for the death penalty for some drug dealers.
