Adam, Rick Harrison’s son and creator of the hit show Pawn Stars, died of a fentanyl overdose when he was 39 years old.
A Harrison spokesman verified the news that his son died of a fentanyl overdose in a statement released to the media. The statement continued by stating that the fentanyl issue is a national emergency that “must be taken more seriously.” Harrison showed his affection for his son Adam by posting a photo of the two of them together on social media. A former campaign associate of the elder Harrison’s, Donald Trump, sent his sympathies on the post.
Reality show “Pawn Stars,” created by Rick and his father Richard in 2009, followed the lives of the people who worked at and patronized the World Famous Gold & Silver Pawn Shop. The Harrison family became famous as a result. Adam was involved with the family company, although he never made an appearance on the show.
Fentanyl is considered a Schedule II controlled substance by the Drug Enforcement Agency. It is about 100 times more potent than morphine, and two milligrams (which is smaller than a single grain of salt) can be lethal. According to a research provided by the CDC, the number of deaths caused by synthetic opioids, including fentanyl that is made illegally, rose by more than 55% between 2020 and 2021. Fentanyl has been identified as the primary factor contributing to the surge in fatal overdoses observed in recent years.
Kari Lake, a Republican candidate for Senate in Arizona, called the fentanyl that’s being transported across the southern border a “weapon of mass destruction.” Lake shared a story of a woman whose daughter died of an accidental fentanyl overdose after consuming what she believed to be half a Xanax.
After 726 fatalities in 2020, 806 people died from overdoses in San Francisco in 2023. According to the San Francisco Department of Public Health, fentanyl was the primary drug that caused overdose deaths.
