Decriminalization and Recriminalization in British Columbia, Canada

"First, if the goal of the policy shift is to reduce preventable deaths and other harms, it may be key to clearly distinguish which organizations, private and public, benefit from the criminalization of drug use before integrating their inclusion into guiding the model (Michaud et al., 2024a). For example, BC's model not only heavily featured police representation, it was ultimately shaped by these police representatives, has made it susceptible to police now weaponizing the framework post-implementation via their weighted influence (Canadian Press, 2022; Michaud et al., 2024a). Second is that in many jurisdictions, any reform to drug possession and use laws will be occurring within longstanding prohibitionist-based frameworks, and will face varying levels of systemic resistance – at the very least through power and societal policy inertia, and possibly through more explicit forms of pro-prohibitionist politics. In regards to the latter, the BC NDP have chosen to roll-back the decriminalization framework, rather than stand behind it, which could likely be shaped by electoral strategy, while not necessarily reducing the harms of criminalization. Other jurisdictions may consider planning for this type of resistance to ensure reforms are provided adequate time to create and present indicators of benefits to the public. This is of particular importance when considering the amount of public resources that can be poured into shifting away from deeply embedded policies related to drug consumption and production.

"The policy terrain under BC's three-year decriminalization framework pilot continues to rapidly shift. The framework has undergone significant and swift transformations, despite being in place for fewer than two years. This commentary characterizes this framework as a tool of social control of people and regulation of the public's interactions accessing public space. It can likewise be framed as biopower in operation, where stakeholders hold contesting objectives of implementation. Overall, decriminalization can be situated within the BC provincial government's overall response to the crisis, which has been “patchy and precarious,” and has permitted the deaths of over 14,000 people since being declared in 2016. Decriminalization could be a life affirming policy if it were shaped to undo status quo approaches to drug law. Currently, an average of six people die every day directly from the poisoned drug supply in BC (Death Review Panel, 2023), and many more people endure other forms of preventable harm and violence (Care Not Cops, 2024; Kalicum et al., 2024; McDermid et al., 2024; Office of the Provincial Health Officer, 2024; Swaich et al., 2023)."