Windsor, Ont., police officers are no longer just passing by people openly using illegal drugs in public. They’re now stopping to arrest and charge them.
While police have always had the ability to make those simple drug possession arrests, in 2020, federal lawyers were told to avoid prosecuting unless they were seen as serious cases.
For quite a while, police in this southwestern Ontario city refrained from making such arrests because it was unlikely that charges would be taken up in court.
This summer, Deputy Chief Ken Cribley mentioned that their directive changed after hearing concerns from the community.
“We’ve heard the concerns loud and clear,” said Cribley. “The question’s been asked: ‘Why can we see people openly doing drugs and a police car drove right by them?’ That’s been criticism we’ve received for the last year or a number of months.”
In 2020, the Public Prosecution Service of Canada (PPSC), which handles drug charges in court, directed federal lawyers to steer clear of prosecuting simple drug possession unless they were considered “the most serious cases.”
“We’ve met with our Crowns and not every Crown attorney agrees to start laying charges for simple possession, but we’ve started to do that,” said Cribley.
Service to track charges’ progress through courts
When asked how local prosecutors are reacting to an uptick in simple possession charges made by Windsor police, Cribley stated, “that remains to be seen.”
“We will be tracking the numbers. We’re doing a project on it. We’re laying the charges, we’re keeping stats and we’re going to see how many make it through the courts.”
The Windsor Police Service has highlighted the success of its Nurse Police Team (NPT), which pairs an officer with a hospital nurse on the streets to assist vulnerable individuals.
In fact, former chief Jason Bellaire will receive an award for excellence in innovation at the upcoming inaugural Windsor police chief’s gala.
Even those arrested for open drug use are being “put in contact with services,” said Cribley.
“Maybe not every time we’re making an arrest, but in those cases too, our NPT will be there. We also have police who ride with social workers,” he added.
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