Decriminalization undone: Assessing the amendment to British Columbia's decriminalization of personal drug possession framework.

Abstract

The Province of British Columbia (BC) is in the midst of an ongoing public health emergency, declared in 2016 in response to significant levels of drug poisonings/overdoses stemming from the unregulated drug supply. In response, BC implemented decriminalization in 2023, removing criminal sanctions for adults possessing up to 2.5 cumulative grams of opioids, cocaine, methamphetamine, and MDMA. Approximately 15 months later, BC amended their decriminalization framework, effectively re-criminalizing public drug consumption and possession in public spaces across BC to prioritize safety to an undefined "public" over the health and safety of people who are structurally marginalized by dominant, intersecting systems of power. This commentary assesses BC's amended decriminalization framework through a public health lens, to examine how this unbalanced prioritization of "public safety" (as defined by law enforcement bodies) contributes to health and social inequities. By focusing on the (1) discursive exclusion of members of the public who already endure structural marginalization in the weaponization of "public safety," (2) escalation of efforts to displace these groups from public spaces, and (3) opportunity costs of law enforcement prioritization, we argue that BC's most recent drug policy shift is incompatible with its stated goal of balancing public safety and public health.