DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE NEWS RELEASE
Attorney General Raúl Torrez today announced the opening of a formal investigation into allegations that the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration knowingly allowed fentanyl pills to be distributed in New Mexico communities. The announcement follows a letter AG Torrez transmitted to Governor Michelle Lujan Grisham in response to her June 24, 2026, letter raising the allegations.
New Mexico has been among the states hardest hit by the fentanyl crisis, with overdose deaths devastating communities across the state. The New Mexico Department of Justice will transmit a formal Touhy letter to the Federal Government demanding documents and information about the DEA’s conduct, in New Mexico and nationally, to determine whether the alleged failures reflect a broader pattern of reckless or unlawful behavior.
The investigation will evaluate the full range of available legal remedies, including criminal prosecution, civil litigation, and structural relief to prevent similar conduct in the future.
“The families who have lost children, siblings, and parents to fentanyl deserve the truth about what the federal government knew and what it failed to do. If the DEA stood by while poison flooded our communities, that is not a bureaucratic failure. It is a betrayal of the people it was sworn to protect. This office will pursue every legal avenue available to hold the responsible parties accountable and make certain this never happens again.”
— Attorney General Raúl Torrez
Text of full letter:
Dear Governor Lujan Grisham:
Your letter of June 24, 2026, raises deeply disturbing allegations: that the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) knowingly allowed fentanyl pills to flow into our communities. If those allegations are accurate, the consequences for New Mexicans were not abstract. They were fatal. New Mexico already ranks among the states hardest hit by fentanyl overdose deaths, and the families who have lost children, siblings, and parents to this crisis deserve a full accounting of what the federal government knew, what it did, and what it failed to do. I share your outrage, and I am committed to pursuing every appropriate legal avenue to hold the responsible parties accountable.
You have raised the possibility of criminal prosecution of federal officers. I want to be direct with you about the legal landscape: while federal law enforcement personnel are not above the law, the Supremacy Clause of the United States Constitution provides substantial protections for federal employees acting within the scope of their authority. The governing framework, established in In re Neagle, 135 U.S. 1 (1890), and developed through subsequent decisions, does not foreclose state prosecution of federal officers, but it creates significant legal barriers that must be carefully evaluated before proceeding. We will do that evaluation rigorously and honestly.
I am committed to a thorough and aggressive investigation. In the immediate term, I will transmit a Touhy letter to the Federal Government demanding documents and information about the DEA’s conduct, in New Mexico and nationally, to determine whether what occurred here reflects a broader pattern of reckless or unlawful behavior. We will pursue all other appropriate investigative steps in parallel. Once the facts are established, we will pursue the full range of available remedies, whether that be criminal prosecution, civil litigation under the Federal Tort Claims Act, or both. We will also seek structural relief to prevent federal law enforcement from endangering the lives of New Mexicans in the future.
The people of New Mexico deserve a full accounting of what happened and a firm commitment that it will not happen again. You have my word that this office will not rest until we have both.