B.C. marks one year after decriminalizing possession of small amounts of illicit drugs
Posted January 31, 2024 11:06 am.
Last Updated January 31, 2024 3:54 pm.
Jan. 31, 2024, marks a full year since B.C. decriminalized the possession of a small amount of illicit drugs.
Currently, people aged 18 and up cannot be arrested or charged, and their drugs won’t be seized, if they’re found in possession of up to 2.5 grams of illicit substances, including cocaine, methamphetamine, MDMA, and opioids such as heroin, fentanyl, and morphine.
The province became the first in Canada to decriminalize a small amount of illicit drugs after Health Canada approved B.C.’s request to be granted an exemption from the federal Controlled Drugs and Substances Act in May 2022.
At the time, the provincial government said the decriminalization move was being made in part to “take steps to treat addiction as a health issue rather than a criminal one.”
In a statement Wednesday, Minster of Mental Health and Addictions Jennifer Whiteside shared that the goal is to also reduce fear and shame associated with addiction, “so more people can feel comfortable reaching out for help.”
“People living with addiction shouldn’t be trapped in the court system. It doesn’t help anyone or make communities any safer. Fear of criminal repercussions increases risks of overdose by leading people with addiction challenges to hide their substance use and deters people from calling for help during an overdose emergency,” she said.
“Further, we know criminalization can have an impact on the ability for someone to seek and hold employment, income and housing, which further perpetuates cycles of poverty and undermines people’s recovery journeys.
“The decriminalization pilot project is part of B.C.’s broader work to address the ongoing toxic drug crisis, and we are beginning to see results. We have already seen a decrease in the criminalizing of people who are living with addiction, so they can be better connected to health care they need.”
As it stands, decriminalization in B.C. will be in effect until Jan. 31, 2026. Throughout this pilot period, the government says it will work to monitor and evaluate what is happening to ensure the process is “meeting the desired outcomes of decriminalization and there’s no unintended consequences.”
However, the first year of decriminalization has not come without its critics.
In September 2023, the possession of illicit drugs within 15 metres of any play structure, spray or wading pool, or skate park was “prohibited” effective immediately.
Whiteside said at the time, “We requested this amendment from Health Canada to ensure that families feel safe in their community while continuing to use every tool available to fight the toxic-drug crisis and save lives.”
The move meant that people found to be in possession of illicit drugs near the specified “child-focused spaces,” can be arrested or apprehended under the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act.
However, the British Columbia Supreme Court blocked those laws in December, ruling in favour of the Harm Reduction Nurses Association. The Supreme Court imposed a temporary injunction until March 31, with the judge saying “irreparable harm will be caused” if the laws come into force.
The nurses association argued the act would violate the Canadian charter in various ways if enforced.
A BC United MLA also reached out to the federal government Tuesday hoping to put an immediate end to B.C.’s drug decriminalization pilot program.
In a letter to the federal minister for mental health and addictions, Elenore Sturko said she believes the province hasn’t proved its one-year-old decriminalization pilot is working, especially after another record-breaking year for toxic drug deaths.
But Leslie McBain, co-founder of advocacy group Moms Stop the Harm, told CityNews Sturko doesn’t understand the point of the three-year pilot, which is to prevent people in possession of a small amount of drugs from entering the criminal justice system.
“It’s primarily to keep people who use drugs out of the criminal justice system,” McBain said. “It doesn’t actually have an impact on the number of deaths in B.C.”
B.C.’s ongoing unregulated toxic drug crisis hit another grim milestone, with the province recording an unprecedented number of deaths in 2023.
The BC Coroners Service says there were 2,511 suspected unregulated toxic drug deaths, marking “the highest number of suspected deaths ever recorded in a year.”
That figure is five per cent higher than the number of deaths recorded in 2022, which was 2,383.
Decriminalization is not responsible for toxic drug deaths: coroner
Since the province declared a public health emergency in April 2016, close to 14,000 people have been killed as a result of drug toxicity, Chief Coroner Lisa Lapointe shared last week.
The province estimates 225,000 people use unregulated toxic drugs, with about 100,000 having an opioid-use disorder. Lapointe said that given the toxic drug supply and its “unpredictability,” each of those individuals is at risk of death for decades.
“Those using or dependent on substances governed by Canada’s Controlled Drugs and Substances Act have been criminalized for the non-prescribed use of the substances the Act covers. Our country has historically responded to drug use with punishment, imprisonment, fines, court orders, and criminal records,” Lapointe said.
“This response has resulted in lost jobs, lost families, lost dignity, and lost hope. It has required huge investments in the criminal justice system, police, courts, probation officers, and prisons. What if, instead of continuing to revert to policing and punishing for public safety, we focused instead on addressing the underlying reasons people use substances or become dependent on substances, pain, trauma, physical or mental health challenges?
“What if we focused on developing a meaningful continuum of care for those experiencing harms from controlled and illegal drugs or developed evidence-based standards for evidence-based treatment and recovery?” she asked.
The goal of decriminalization is to help reduce stigma, Lapointe explained, and to help encourage people who use drugs to seek life-saving services and care. “It’s to reduce harms. This idea is not radical.”
“Decriminalization is not responsible for these deaths,” she said. “Illicit fentanyl is responsible for these deaths.”
Lapointe explained there is no evidence to suggest that the general public is at risk from public drug use.
“It’s not comfortable seeing people use drugs in public. But who’s most uncomfortable? Is it those of us who get to return to our warm homes and beds and showers at the end of the day? Or is it those living unhoused, who are trying to cope the best way they know?”
She said the goal of decriminalization is also to remove the stigma so that people can access supports.
–With files from Hana Mae Nassar
