On Monday, March 10, the Narcotics Unit of the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office executed a search warrant at the Fairfield Inn & Suites in south Sebastopol. During the search of a hotel room, 33-year-old Christopher Fee and 39-year-old Alexis Cooper were arrested.
Authorities discovered nearly half a pound of fentanyl, 155 Xanax pills, a vial of a controlled numbing agent, and a small amount of cocaine in the room. Detectives also found packaging materials and digital scales, which are indicative of narcotics sales.
According to the Drug Enforcement Administration, two milligrams of fentanyl can be lethal, depending on a person’s body size, tolerance, and past usage.
Both Cooper and Fee were booked into the Sonoma County Jail on charges of possession of a controlled substance for sale and possession of prescription medications for sale. They were later released on zero bail.
Yes, you read that right—released on zero bail.
The Sebastopol Times reached out to Sergeant Juan Valencia of the Sonoma County Sheriff’s Office for an explanation.
“The court system in the county still has zero bail,” Valencia said. “So if it’s for a non-violent crime, and they meet the criteria for zero bail—there’s a matrix we look at—they basically get released.”
“They still have to go to court and face their charges. It doesn’t change our job,” he continued. “So basically, for us, we did our investigation, we got them with narcotics for sale—which is a felony—we arrested them and then our investigation basically goes to the District Attorney’s office, and they’re the ones that seek prosecution on them.”
“We issue the citation and then you hope that they show up for court,” Valencia said.
He understood why readers might be surprised and frustrated by this.
“It’s definitely frustrating,” he said. “This all started during COVID, the zero bail stuff. Each county could get rid of it, but they just, you know, they haven’t gotten rid of it here.”
“Here’s the thing, people are selling drugs that are [tainted],” he said. “For example, Hey, you’re buying cocaine. Well, it’s not really cocaine because it’s laced with fentanyl, because fentanyl is cheaper to make, and they use it as a cutting agent to get more product. Same thing with Xanax. It’s Xanax with fentanyl.”
“There’s definitely a lot going on with drug stuff, and there hasn’t really been a lot of punishment for it, so they’re getting away with a lot,” Valencia said. “But now, I think people are starting to get fed up with all the drugs and the harm that they're causing people.”
Thinking of a lovely young woman, a friend of my daughter’s, who is no longer with us because of a fentanyl-laced Xanax, I said, “I hope that changes.”
“You and me both,” Valencia said wearily.
Astounding. A half pound of fentanyl could undoubtedly kill everyone in Sebastopol. Far more people actually — a 2-milligram dose is enough to kill the average adult. And these people are free to walk. Perhaps we should re-define the terms for zero bail.
I can understand the knee jerk reaction from many readers to be outraged by the zero bail release of the people arrested here. I’m especially empathetic to those who have lost family members to the opioid crisis. I used to feel this way as well, but after reading a lot of literature from the experts, I am now firmly on the side of zero bail being better for our community and the country.
This is the justice system working well and as intended – a reminder to us all that people are innocent until proven guilty. I think we’d all want due process applied to ourselves and this is no exception.
For those open to challenging their own beliefs on this, here are a few resources and stats to check out:
1. There is no evidence linking bail reform (i.e. zero bail) to higher crime rates (Source 1)
2. Those who await their trial in the community instead of in jail are no more likely to be re-arrested after bail reform was passed than before (Source 1)
3. Cash bail disproportionately punishes poor communities, which are already over-policed. Rich people can pay bail, poor people have a harder time doing so. (Source 1)
4. Those who can’t pay bail and stay in jail for non-violent and misdemeanor crimes before court dates return to jail or prison at higher rates. Some jail now leads to more jail later. (Source 2)
5. Sonoma County jails are already chronically understaffed. Putting more people in those jails won’t help staff or inmates. (Source 3)
One final quote from this report from the Rochester Institute of Technology’s Center for Public Safety Initiatives (Source 4) stands out to me – I hope that Sergeant Juan Valencia reads it:
“Responsible leaders should demand proof that the changes to the bail laws have caused crime increases (as opposed to a correlation) and that the changes being advocated will address those causes. To date, every legitimate analysis of the data has made no such case for change.”
If we want to reduce crime and get drugs off the streets, that’s a fine idea. Cash bail just isn’t the solution.
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Source 1: https://www.theusconstitution.org/news/the-pros-and-cons-of-ending-cash-bail/
Source 2: https://www.jjay.cuny.edu/news-events/news/real-impact-bail-reform-public-safety
Source 3: https://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/news/county-in-crisis-more-sonoma-county-jail-deputy-jobs-go-unfilled-as-overti/
Source 4: https://www.rit.edu/liberalarts/sites/rit.edu.liberalarts/files/docs/CPSI%20Working%20Paper_2023.04_Bail%20Reform%20Data.pdf