they did, they couldn t save him. reporter: what they did not know was that ocean county prosecutor, joseph coronado was already seeking justice for their son as well as any other death in their jurisdiction. using a 1980s law for drug induced death. if you re going to be a dealer and that heroin is going to kill somebody, we re going to take that death, we re going to take that overdose and treat it as a homicide. reporter: coronado kicked off the effort a year ago after his county suffered eight overdose deaths in a week. follow the pathology. reporter: he changed police protocols. now homicide detectives respond to each case. in ray s case, kenneth stotin pled guilty to manslaughter. some of the key eviden, heroin bags, text messages exchanged between he and stotin moments before his death.
or chicago, a city that visits the e.r. from heroin overdose. taking out the young people, left and right. maryland where a toxic blend left 37 people dead since september. the same recipe killed 22 in the last week of january in pennsylvania. a 19-year-old user overdosed on that batch more than once but told cnn he and other junkies knew it was deadly and were seeking it out. somebody knows there s heroin bags out there killing people or making them overdose, we know they are the good bags. it s what everybody wants to do. good evening, i m don lemon. thank you for joining us. this is a special edition of heroin: a century of seduction. celebs like philip seymour
martha: shocking news, oscar-winning actor seymour hoffman found dead. the toxicology report will have to be done, of course. sources say this is an apparent heroin over doors live outside the apartment. have police said anything about the circumstances surrounding his death? reporter: police did confirm to me they did find hoffman with a needle in his arm and thereby was two bags believed to be empty heroin bags. when he was discovered by france uni apartment behind me. this is a part that he rents for $10,000 per month, a two bedroom apartment. separated in october. they do share three children. his body taken to the medical examiner s office where an autopsy is being performed today.
heroin bags out there killing people and making them overdose, those are the good bags. reporter: these are recovered heroin evidence, analysis by allegheny medical examiner, dr. carl williams shows half of the white powder is fentanyl. overdose deaths in allegheny county, 15 in a week, 22-53. now that they are mixing a much more potent fen tanily in with the heroin, it explains why we are seeing this massive upsurge now in the community. the dose they are probably used to using is maximized because of the fentanyl. yes. chemically, much more potent. greenbrier treatment center, may i help you. reporter: addiction centers in the region have received hundreds of calls from addicts and their families. you have to sit down and you have to ask yourself, am i done?