A woman has been charged with murder in connection with the fentanyl overdose death of a 21-year-old man from Texas City, in a case authorities described as part of a larger effort to crack down on fentanyl dealers. Federal, state and local officials announced the arrest, framing it as a message to anyone who brings the drug into their communities. The young man at the center of the case was Chase Boone, whose death has left his family grieving more than a year later.
The chain of events began on August 2, 2025, when police, firefighters and paramedics were called to a Super 8 motel in La Marque. There, first responders found Chase Boone in distress inside a room. Despite immediate life-saving efforts, the 21-year-old died at the scene, turning what started as an emergency call into the beginning of a much longer investigation that would stretch across nearly a year.
Investigators later learned from the Galveston County Medical Examiner's Office that Boone had died from a fentanyl overdose. That medical finding reframed the case, shifting it from a sudden death to a potential homicide and setting in motion a wider inquiry into how the drug had reached him. The determination became the foundation for the criminal investigation that followed.
The discovery sparked a joint investigation that brought together several agencies, including the La Marque police, the Galveston County District Attorney's Office, the Drug Enforcement Administration and the United States Marshals. The coordinated effort reflected the seriousness with which authorities are now treating overdose deaths tied to fentanyl, pursuing them as cases that can lead to murder charges rather than being treated solely as accidental.
That investigation eventually led authorities to Brooklyn Pace, who has now been charged with murder in Chase Boone's death. She was arrested on May 21 and is being held on a 200,000 dollar bond. Officials said the case is part of the federal government's Fentanyl Free America Initiative, which they described as focusing on prevention, enforcement and support for communities affected by the drug.
For Boone's family, the arrest brought a measure of justice after a year of grief. Relatives described marking what would have been his 22nd birthday at the cemetery, saying that was how they celebrated him. They spoke of the pain of losing him so young, with one family member saying it had all happened because someone wanted money and gave no consideration to the cost. They remembered Chase as someone who trusted people, and said that trust cost him his life.
Authorities indicated the matter is not fully closed. Asked whether Brooklyn Pace had acted alone or was part of a larger network involved in the 21-year-old's death, investigators said they could not provide those details because the investigation remains ongoing. Officials added that they had a pointed message for anyone who believes they can bring fentanyl and other drugs into the community, signaling that further enforcement action could follow.