KXAN | Governor Greg Abbott signed a law to help protect more children and their families against the deadly dangers of fentanyl. It’s called Tucker’s Law. It’s named after 19-year-old Tucker who died in 2021 from a fentanyl overdose. His mom Stefanie Turner sat down with Jennifer Sanders about the bill’s passing.
Excerpts from the Insight
Speaking out
“People often thank me for speaking out and I say, ‘If I don’t, who will?’ If we don’t stand up against this and we fight the stigma and the judgment that comes with [losing a loved one to fentanyl]—because it does come with judgment… people who don’t have an understanding or assume I didn’t talk to my child about drugs, or I wasn’t an involved parent, or…. That’s the assumption: ‘Not my child, couldn’t happen to me.’ And the reality is that it is happening to all walks.”
Warning signs
“What are the warning signs? What do we look for? And a lot of times, there aren’t any. Kids are going to bed at night, in their bedroom, with you in your living room, and they’re not waking up. And you’re finding them dead in the morning. That’s the reality. This is what’s happening across our nation to our youth. But really, to all age groups.”
The Work Ahead
“I wish I could tell you that I feel happy. And happy isn’t the word that I feel. I feel proud, I feel grateful for my community. I didn’t do this alone. This was not just Stefanie doing this. Texas Against Fentanyl is a group effort, and partnering with our legislators to do this has been very awesome.
“So I honestly feel like, Okay, checking the box that that’s done. We’re onto the next thing—now we need to roll this out, now we need to execute. We got the law, let’s execute a plan, a strategy, where we can not waste any more time.
“When I would hear of another fentanyl death, I would think if I could have talked to them before, if I could have explained to that mom what that looked like. I know so much now in hindsight. So that’s why it’s really important that I share.”
TXAF.ORG (Texas Against Fentanyl) was formed after Stefanie Turner lost her 19 year-old son, Tucker Roe, to an illicit Percocet pill purchased from a peer on social media. In May 2022, TXAF became a registered nonprofit charity.
