British Columbia Centre On Substance Use, 400-1045 Howe Street, Vancouver, BC, V6Z 2A9, Canada.
Faculty of Health Sciences, Simon Fraser University, 8888 University Drive, Burnaby, BC, V5A 1S6, Canada.
Harm Reduct J. 2023 Aug 30;20(1):117. doi: 10.1186/s12954-023-00833-7.
Several jurisdictions in Canada have recently considered decriminalizing possession of illicit drugs for personal use (henceforth, simple possession) as part of their responses to the ongoing drug toxicity/overdose crisis. In this context, we sought to examine an early implementation case of a de facto depenalization policy of simple possession offences in Vancouver, Canada, that was enacted in 2006. Specifically, we characterized experiences of people who use drugs (PWUD) whose drugs were discretionally seized by police without arrest.
Data were derived from three prospective cohorts of community-recruited PWUD in Vancouver over 16 months in 2019-2021. We conducted multivariable generalized estimating equations analyses to determine the prevalence of and factors associated with drug seizure. Sub-analyses used data collected in 2009-2012 and examined the trends over time.
Among 995 participants who were interviewed in 2019-2021, 63 (6.3%) had their drugs seized by police at least once in the past 6 months. In multivariable analyses, factors significantly associated with drug seizure included: homelessness (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]: 1.98; 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.09-3.61), working in the unregulated drug market (AOR: 4.93; 95% CI 2.87-8.49), and naloxone administration (AOR: 2.15; 95% CI 1.23-3.76). In 2009-2012, 67.8% reported having obtained new drugs immediately after having their drugs seized by police. Odds of drug seizure were not significantly different between the two time periods (2019-2021 vs. 2009-2012) (AOR: 0.93; 95% CI: 0.64-1.35).
Despite the depenalization policy, the Vancouver Police Department has continued to seize illicit drugs from PWUD, even in cases where no arrest occurred. This policing practice may create health and safety risks for PWUD as it forces PWUD to increase the engagement with the unregulated illicit drug market. Our findings support calls for abolishing this often-undocumented discretionary policing practice that may exacerbate ongoing health inequities and interfere with peer-based overdose prevention efforts.
加拿大的几个司法管辖区最近考虑将个人使用非法药物的持有行为（以下简称简单持有）合法化，作为应对持续的毒品毒性/过量危机的措施之一。在这种情况下，我们试图研究加拿大温哥华实施的一项简单持有犯罪事实上非刑法规制政策的早期实施案例，该政策于 2006 年生效。具体来说，我们描述了警察在没有逮捕的情况下随意没收毒品的吸毒者（PWUD）的经历。
数据来自 2019 年至 2021 年期间在温哥华进行的三个前瞻性社区招募吸毒者队列，共 16 个月。我们进行了多变量广义估计方程分析，以确定药物没收的流行率和相关因素。亚分析使用 2009 年至 2012 年收集的数据，并研究了随时间的趋势。
在 2019 年至 2021 年接受采访的 995 名参与者中，有 63 人（6.3%）在过去 6 个月中至少有一次药物被警察没收。在多变量分析中，与药物没收显著相关的因素包括：无家可归（调整后的优势比 [AOR]：1.98；95%置信区间 [CI] 1.09-3.61）、在不受监管的毒品市场工作（AOR：4.93；95% CI 2.87-8.49）和纳洛酮给药（AOR：2.15；95% CI 1.23-3.76）。在 2009 年至 2012 年期间，67.8%的人报告在药物被警察没收后立即获得了新的毒品。药物没收的几率在两个时间段之间没有显著差异（2019-2021 年与 2009-2012 年）（AOR：0.93；95% CI：0.64-1.35）。
尽管有非刑法规制政策，但温哥华警察局仍继续从吸毒者那里没收非法药物，即使在没有逮捕的情况下也是如此。这种警务做法可能会给吸毒者带来健康和安全风险，因为它迫使吸毒者增加与不受监管的非法毒品市场的接触。我们的研究结果支持废除这种经常未记录的自由裁量性警务做法的呼吁，这种做法可能会加剧持续存在的健康不平等，并干扰基于同行的过量预防工作。
