Stephanie Rose Bongiovi, the 19-year-old daughter of Jon Bon Jovi, will not face drug charges following her shocking Nov. 14 arrest and reported heroin overdose, local authorities announced Thursday, according to Syracuse's The Post-Standard.
Oneida County district attorney Scott D. McNamara explained that charges against Stephanie and her friend, Ian S. Grant — who made the call to police — have been dropped, in concordance with a recently amended law in New York State.
Hamilton College student Stephanie was arrested past midnight on Wednesday Nov. 14 after heroin was discovered in her dorm room, and charged with criminal possession of a controlled substance, criminal possession of marijuana and criminal use of drug paraphernalia. Calling from the dorm room after Stephanie's apparent overdose, her friend Ian S. Grant, 21, was arrested and charged with misdemeanor criminal possession of a controlled substance.
"By law, we cannot prosecute either of these two individuals," McNamara explained. Back in September 2011, New York State Penal Law added an exemption clause to drug possession charges for anyone experiencing a "drug or alcohol overdose or other life-threatening medical emergency" — the law also exempts anyone making the call about such an emergency.
District Attorney McNamara told Syracuse's Post-Standard it's the "Good Samaritan section" of the law.
Stephanie is Bon Jovi's only daughter with wife Dorothea Hurley. The couple also have three sons: Jesse James, 17, Jacob Hurley, 10, and Romeo Jon, 8.
The rocker's rep had no comment on the incident.
