Saskatoon police not in favour of drug decriminalization [Video]

The Saskatoon Police Service is reaffirming its commitment to approach drug use as a public health issue in a report to the police board this week — but not without reservation.

While it says the service “as a whole” has embraced that “shift in mindset” — with officers being instructed not to lay charges for simple possession and instead refer them to support — the lack of suitable treatment services for drug users means they have few options at their disposal to deal with something that is still technically a crime.

In the report, Supt. Blair Pellerin with the Criminal Investigations Bureau writes that police services across the country have been moving away from punitive approaches to drug possession since 2020, when the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police published a letter calling for the decriminalization of personal drug use. 

That letter was followed by policy changes from the Public …