La Jolla crime and public safety news: Fentanyl penalties, coronavirus numbers, police blotter

San Diego city and county officials to pursue stricter penalties for fentanyl dealers

San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria says he will issue an executive order directing staff to prioritize the city’s response to rising fentanyl overdoses and deaths.

Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is 50 times more potent than heroin, federal officials say. The drug is cheap to manufacture, easy to mix with other drugs and incredibly addictive. It’s lethal in even small doses.

Last year, 812 people in San Diego County died after taking the drug. In the first six months of this year, an additional 825 people overdosed on fentanyl.

“We will not make or accept excuses for letting this crisis continue to grow out of control,” Gloria said at a news conference Nov. 10. “We are going to own this and we’re going to make sure we’re tackling it at every level.”

As part of the executive order, Gloria said, he plans to task San Diego’s Government Affairs Department with pursuing legislation that would enhance criminal sentences when fentanyl sales result in injury or death.

County District Attorney Summer Stephan said the maximum sentence someone could face for selling fentanyl, even if it leads to a fatal overdose, is three years.

Stephan said new legislation upping the penalties for dealers is sorely needed. “Our laws are completely inadequate,” she said.

Some area law enforcement agencies pursue fentanyl deaths like homicide investigations to enable longer sentences. — The San Diego Union-Tribune

Coronavirus by the numbers

The San Diego County Health & Human Services Agency posts an updated list of coronavirus cases by ZIP code, including rates per 100,000 residents. Through Nov. 5, ZIP code 92037 (estimated population 43,400) had a total of 7,940 registered cases (up by 40 from the previous count) and 18,343 per 100,000. ZIP code is the code of residence, which may not be the location of exposure.

The county also posts a list by ZIP code of the number of residents who have completed a “primary series” of the COVID-19 vaccine, defined as two doses for people older than 5 for two-dose vaccines. For ages 6 months to 4 years, a primary vaccine series is defined as three doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine or two doses of the Moderna vaccine.

Through Nov. 9, 36,272 residents of the 92037 ZIP code had completed a primary vaccine series and 25,051 were fully vaccinated and had received a booster dose.

Police blotter

Further details were unavailable from San Diego police.

Nov. 3

Felony assault on elder/dependent adult: 5400 block La Jolla Boulevard, 8 a.m.

Nov. 5

Felony vehicle theft: 700 block Wrelton Drive, noon

Nov. 6

Felony vehicle theft: 8700 block La Jolla Shores Drive, 4 p.m.

Use/under the influence of a controlled substance: 8600 block Villa La Jolla Drive, 7:45 p.m.

Nov. 7

Commercial burglary: 5700 block La Jolla Boulevard, 3:30 a.m.

Fraud: 8500 block Via Mallorca, 8:40 a.m.

Nov. 8

Residential burglary: 5700 block Waverly Avenue, 2 a.m.

Felony vehicle theft: 5700 block Waverly Avenue, 2 a.m.

Felony vandalism: 9500 block La Jolla Shores Drive, 1:45 p.m.

Nov. 10

Felony vehicle theft: 300 block Coast Boulevard, 11:39 a.m.

Petty theft: 800 block Nautilus Street, 12:20 p.m.

Nov. 11

Commercial burglary: 7800 block Herschel Avenue, 2:50 a.m.

Vehicle break-in/theft: 8600 block Kennel Way, 4:45 p.m.

Battery: 5600 block La Jolla Boulevard, 9:31 p.m.

Nov. 12

Tampering with vehicle: 7700 block Via Capri, 8 a.m.

Vehicle break-in/theft: 8300 block La Jolla Scenic Drive North, 1:20 p.m.

— Compiled by Ashley Mackin-Solomon from police and other local reports ◆