The recent sentencing of 32-year-old Jennifer Johanna Allen, a Norco woman who allowed her 17-month-old daughter to intake a lethal dose of fentanyl, highlights the country's ongoing struggle with the opioid crisis. Allen was sentenced to 15 years to life in state prison Yesterday, September 18, after pleading guilty to second-degree murder for the death of her daughter, identified as "J.A.," in court documents reviewed by the Daily News.

Allen's guilty plea was part of a plea agreement with the Riverside County District Attorney's Office, which led to the dismissal of a child cruelty charge and a sentence-enhancement for great bodily injury, per the Orange County Register.

On May 9, patrol deputies were called to Allen's home following reports of a child in medical distress. They found the baby unconscious, and efforts by county fire paramedics to resuscitate her failed.

The investigation uncovered evidence of fentanyl's involvement in the infant's death, which led to Allen's arrest, according to the San Bernardino Sun.

The Daily News reported statistics from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, noting that fentanyl is 80-100 times more potent than morphine and can be mixed into other street drugs or prescription drugs without the user's knowledge. Manufactured in overseas labs, fentanyl enters the country via cartels who smuggle it across the U.S.-Mexico border. A mere two milligrams can be lethal upon ingestion, the DEA adds.