Global Courant 2023-05-18 11:06:49
Support for drug decriminalization is dwindling among Oregonians as overdoses and homelessness continue to rise, a recent survey found.
Portland-based DHM Research surveyed 500 Oregonians and found that 63% support the reinstatement of criminal penalties for drug possession while continuing to fund treatment programs.
Tents and a wheelchair cover a sidewalk in downtown Portland on Feb. 17, 2023. More than 60% of polled voters believe drug decriminalization has exacerbated homelessness in Oregon. (Hannah Ray Lambert/Fox News Digital)
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“Oregon has turned into an international spectacle and I think we looked at each other and realized we made a huge mistake,” Portland trial attorney Kristin Olson told Fox News.
Oregon is the only state in the country to decriminalize possession of hard drugs for personal use, including heroin, meth and fentanyl, after 58% of voters passed Measure 110 in 2020.
Olson voted for Measure 110 because he thought it would reflect Portugal’s decriminalization effort, which changed the law so that drug users are sent to counseling or mandatory treatment. But Oregon law made possession a class E violation, punishable by a fine of up to $100. Treatment is optional.
“If we remove all incentives, they won’t go into treatment,” Olson said.
More than 60% of voters DHM investigated said the decriminalization of drugs has made addiction, homelessness and crime worse.
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Every demographic DHM listed in the survey, which had a margin of error of plus or minus 4.4%, was in favor of reducing criminal penalties for possession, although support was lowest (51%) among 18-29 year olds . Republicans were most in favor (80%) of recriminalization.
“I don’t think Oregonians want to resume the drug war,” Olson said. “I think we didn’t realize that what we were signing up for was the deterioration of civilized standards and the ceding of public space to people in the late stages of drug addiction and engaged in all sorts of criminal activities to keep that addiction going hold.”
According to preliminary estimates from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, overdose deaths in Oregon increased 4.58% from November 2021 to November 2022. The increase was more than seven times the national average.
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Measure 110 also diverted a significant portion of the state’s marijuana tax revenue – which had previously gone to schools, police and local governments – to fund subsidies for harm reduction (such as handing out clean needles), overdose prevention, convalescent housing and more.
But it’s not used to pay for the treatment, what a Oregon Health & Science University found study is sparse in Oregon.
“People can’t get detox and rehab when they need it because our focus — especially after 110 — is harm reduction,” Olson said. “We’re normalizing addiction and our focus is really on handing out needles and foil. But recovery, I think, should be the goal.”
An audit also found the state health authority was unable to provide data showing how hundreds of millions of dollars earmarked for addiction treatment were spent.
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Oregon’s addiction crisis was a hot topic during last year’s gubernatorial race. Two of the three candidates supported the repeal of voter-approved Measure 110, but not now-Gov. Tina Kotek.
said the Democrat the bill’s rollout was “stalled in a bureaucracy that was moving at a snail’s pace” and promised to hold the Oregon Health Authority accountable if elected.
Kotek’s office did not respond to a request for comment on the DHM survey.
Hannah Ray Lambert is an associate producer/writer at Fox News Digital Originals.
