DALLAS, Texas — A Dallas drug dealer has been sentenced to 20 years in prison in what authorities say is the first fentanyl murder conviction obtained in Dallas County under a Texas law enacted in 2023.
Destin Scott, who was 29 at the time of his arrest, pleaded guilty on June 10, 2026, to Fentanyl Murder and was sentenced to two decades in prison for supplying narcotics that caused the death of a Dallas woman.
The investigation began on Dec. 11, 2024, when Dallas Fire-Rescue personnel responded to a business in the 7900 block of Great Trinity Forest Way after witnesses discovered Morgan Peterson unresponsive inside a parked vehicle.
Peterson was pronounced dead at the scene. While investigators observed no visible signs of trauma, officers found several capsules containing a white powdery substance, prompting the Dallas Police Department's Narcotics Unit to take over the investigation.
An autopsy later determined Peterson died from MDMA and fentanyl toxicity.
Dallas Police Narcotics Detective Jacob White, a 27-year veteran of the department and member of the Overdose Task Force, led the investigation into Peterson's death.
Detectives reviewed communications between Peterson and Scott and discovered the pair had arranged drug transactions on Dec. 10, 2024, one day before Peterson's death. Investigators determined Peterson purchased illegal narcotics from Scott on two separate occasions that day.
Based on the evidence gathered, Dallas police arrested Scott on June 19, 2025, charging him with Fentanyl Murder, a first-degree felony created under Texas House Bill 6, which took effect in 2023.
The law allows prosecutors to pursue murder charges against individuals who manufacture or deliver fentanyl that results in another person's death, even if there was no intent to kill.
"Our Narcotics detectives worked this case diligently and I am proud to see a successful conviction under this new law, which takes a dangerous drug trafficker off the streets for a long time," Dallas Police Chief Daniel C. Comeaux said.
Learn more about the dangers of illegal narcotics, and how to spot a fentanyl overdose: https://www.facebook.com/share/v/192PEN2hkS/
The case was investigated by the Dallas Police Department Narcotics Unit and Overdose Task Force and is documented under case number 184980-2024.
Authorities said the conviction marks a significant milestone in ongoing efforts to hold fentanyl dealers accountable for overdose deaths in North Texas.
