Brown meets with police officials to discuss fentanyl bill

YOUNGSTOWN — U.S. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, is meeting with city police Chief Robin Lees and Mahoning County Sheriff Jerry Greene today at the city police department to explain his bill aimed at helping police have the necessary tools to investigate crimes and seizures of fentanyl.

Brown is looking to supply police with the same equipment a previous bill he sponsored gave to customs and border patrol agents, which is scanning devices allowing officers to safely detect fentanyl, which could be dangerous if a person comes into contact with it.

The devices would then allow officers to handle fentanyl in the field more safely and also cut down on the backlog of testing by labs who test evidence submitted by police, according to a statement by Brown’s office.