G.D. Hancock, Ph.D.

Arkansas

Arkansas has three laws on supplying drugs that cause a death.

Statutes last checked 7 October 2026 · Not legal advice

Supplying drugs that cause a death

Aggravated death by delivery

Knowingly delivering fentanyl to another person when it causes their death, or knowingly delivering fentanyl, methamphetamine, heroin or cocaine to a minor (under 18) when it causes the minor's death.

Statute
Ark. Code § 5-10-202
Penalty
20 to 60 years or life for an adult's death. Life for a minor's death, unless the defendant is less than three years older than the minor (then 20 to 60 years or life).

Death by delivery in the first degree

Knowingly delivering methamphetamine, heroin or cocaine when it causes the person's death.

Statute
Ark. Code § 5-10-203
Penalty
Class Y felony (10 to 40 years or life). Reduced to a Class A felony (6 to 30 years) if the defendant proves, for example, that they had no prior felony, played a minor role, did not know of what the drug was cut with, or shared drugs held for personal use without any income or benefit. (Ark. Code § 5-4-401 (via FindLaw))

Death by delivery in the second degree

Knowingly delivering any other controlled substance, or a counterfeit substance, when it causes the person's death.

Statute
Ark. Code § 5-10-204
Penalty
Class A felony (6 to 30 years). Class B (5 to 20 years) on the same mitigating factors as first degree; Class Y (10 to 40 years or life) if the state proves a prior drug-delivery felony, extreme indifference to human life, or a victim who was a minor, 60 or older, or incompetent. (Ark. Code § 5-4-401 (via FindLaw))

Created by Act 584 of 2023 (the text linked is the act as passed). The act says it does not restrict the protections of the state's Good Samaritan law.

Calling for help: the Good Samaritan law

A person who seeks medical help in good faith for someone overdosing, or for their own overdose, cannot be arrested, charged or prosecuted for drug possession when the evidence came solely from seeking help, and is protected from probation, parole and pretrial-release sanctions based on that possession. It does not cover supplying drugs.

Statute: Ark. Code § 20-13-1704 (via FindLaw)

Does calling for help protect against the drug-death charge? No.

The Good Samaritan law does not list the drug-death offense, so it does not protect against that charge.

Whatever the law says, if someone is overdosing, call 911. A life comes first. More on calling 911.

Federal law

Federal law applies in every state. When death or serious bodily injury results from using a Schedule I or II drug that a person distributed, federal law sets a mandatory minimum of 20 years and a maximum of life. Federal prosecutors can bring this charge whatever the state law says. (21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(A)-(C))

Cases from Arkansas in the database sample

4 cases in the published sample of the drug-induced homicide case database were prosecuted in Arkansas. The database is still being built; the complete version will be published when it is finished.

Sources

  1. Ark. Code § 5-10-202
  2. Ark. Code § 5-4-401 (via FindLaw)
  3. Ark. Code § 20-13-1704 (via FindLaw)
  4. 21 U.S.C. § 841(b)(1)(A)-(C)

Links to FindLaw go to its copy of the state’s code, used where the official code is published only through LexisNexis or will not display without JavaScript.

About this information

This page describes what the statutes say, as of 7 October 2026. It is not legal advice, and it can’t tell you how a court will apply the law to any particular case. Laws change; check the statute, and please speak to a lawyer in Arkansas about your own situation.