The War on Drugs Escalates in Peterborough

On October 5, 2023, Peterborough Police Chief Stuart Betts announced a new "no tolerance" approach to policing illicit drug use in public. Effective immediately,  police officers will direct people who are using drugs in public to move along to a different location. If they don't, officers will arrest them, Betts said. "Police officers will not tolerate people injecting and smoking up in front of public places, places where our community members should feel safe," Betts said.The announcement was quickly criticized by Peterborough Public Health, which said the new approach "differs significantly from an evidence-based, public health approach to substance use."On this episode of the Peterborough Currents podcast, we have coverage of this story made possible through our partnership with Trent Radio, whose Local Journalism Initiative reporter Eddy Sweeney attended Chief Betts’s media conference on Thursday. Eddy also spoke with Star Fiorotto, a local harm reduction outreach worker, about the announcement.TIMESTAMPS0:00 — Introduction1:25 — A report on Chief Betts's media conference4:14 — The response from Peterborough Public Health 5:36 — Reaction from local harm reduction outreach worker Star Fiorotto13:07 — ConclusionMUSIC: Thanks to Jordan Cook for the music in this episode.