B.C. Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General Garry Begg speaks during a news conference in Surrey, B.C., on Friday, November 29, 2024.
Image Credit: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
December 19, 2024 - 9:00 PM
The Restricting Public Consumption of Illegal Substances Act that passed in Nov. 2023 has just been revoked due to successful court challenges preventing this act coming to fruition.
The law was challenged by the Harm Reduction Nurses Association and other substance-use reform advocates, stating users of illegal drugs will face higher numbers of dying alone if this law preventing drug use in public is in place.
The BC Court of Appeal supported a temporary three-month injunction in March that prevented the law from passing, but with the changes from the federal government, BC police are now capable of gaining consent to warn or refer the person to services to help them.
The law was originally set in place to strengthen the rules of restricting drug use in public spaces. Though the law is currently not in place because of the challenges, as per the BC government’s request last May the federal government has approved BC police to confiscate illegal drugs from those with possession.
Substance possession under 2.5 grams is still decriminalized, so long as it is for personal use by adults, in private residences, addiction health facilities, lawful shelters and overdose prevention and drug check sites.
According to the BC Coroners Service numbers released early December, within the first 10 months of the year, 1,925 people died from overdosing. This is nine per cent fewer people compared to last year’s numbers.
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