CHAT file photo

By Teagan Rasche

Alberta ‘not ready’ to decriminalize drugs, Medicine Hat looking at all options

Jan 20, 2022 | 5:01 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – Across Canada, more provinces are looking at decriminalizing personal possession and use of illicit drugs.

The Alberta Association of Chiefs of Police spoke about their stance on the issue Thursday. Three police chiefs including Brice Iron Shirt (Blood Tribe), Mark Neufeld (Calgary) and Mike Worden (Medicine Hat) spoke out against the decriminalization of personal amounts of illicit drugs in Alberta at this time.

They did acknowledge it could happen at some point as part of an integrated approach.

As the president of the AACP, Neufeld says Alberta is not ready for decriminalization, saying it triggers an immediate need for structural and societal changes that don’t currently exist.

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“This is particularly true in smaller municipalities and rural Alberta and in Indigenous communities,” Neufeld said.

Other things to consider are regulations for use of drugs in public places and near minors, the discarding of needles and public complaints.

Neufeld says police in our province already operate in what is effectively a decriminalized environment.

“Alberta police officers generally do not charge individuals found in possession of small quantities of illicit drugs unless there are aggravating factors present,” Neufeld said.

From an Indigenous policing perspective, Iron Shirt says they are currently under-resourced due to working off of a fixed, underfunded budget.

“This lack of resources has put us in a position where we are unable to react efficiently to any possible negative consequence to the decriminalization of possession of hard drugs,” Iron Shirt said.

The Blood Tribe Police Service is currently restructuring its own Indigenous-based holistic approach to the opioid crisis.

“We don’t recommend the decriminalization or possession of hard drugs for Indigenous policing in Alberta,” Iron Shirt said.

Medicine Hat police chief Mike Worden was there representing rural and smaller community police.

Drug overdoses in Medicine Hat more than doubled in 2021 compared to 2020 but decriminalization alone won’t reduce rates of addiction or overdose.

Worden says many people in the community share a compassionate approach to addiction and ask that they develop policies and strategies that will increase recovery and not cause more harm

“When you talk about safe supply, when you talk about supervised consumption sites, those are all solutions that may or may not work in certain communities,” Worden said. “I know here in Medicine Hat, we are working with our community and our citizens to try to address this issue to ensure we can somehow address the crisis and look for long-term solutions.”

The three police chiefs recognize that addiction and substances abuse are complex public health issues.

The Medicine Hat Overdose Response Group is working to find solutions that meet the needs of our community.