Police officers will determine if someone who is using drugs in the public places poses a danger to others. They will also decide what action to take.
By Josh Cohen, Crosscut
Seattle City Council passed a 6-3 vote on Tuesday to align its municipal code to a state law that will be in effect by 2023, making public drug possession and use a gross misdemeanor. The City Attorney’s Office is now empowered to prosecute these crimes.
Lisa Herbold voted for the bill. Andrew Lewis, Debora Jaurez, Sara Nelson and Alex Pedersen also voted yes. Tammy Morales voted in favor. Teresa Mosqueda, Kshama sawant and Tammy Morales voted against.
Supporters say the legislation is an important tool to address a growing drug crisis. They also claim that the language of the bill is designed to encourage people with substance abuse disorders to seek treatment. Opponents claim it is a return to an old drug war tactic which will imprison drug users, and impact Black and Brown residents disproportionately.
The Council attempted to align the city’s municipal code with state drug laws again on Tuesday. A bill that was co-sponsored by Councilmembers Sara Nelson, Alex Pedersen and City Attorney Ann Davison at her request in June was defeated 5-4. Councilmember Andrew Lewis, who was instrumental in killing the bill that passed in June, said he would support aligning city and state law but could not back a bill that did not have a strong treatment plan.
Councilmembers Lisa Herbold, and Lewis have co-sponsored in the interim months a new version that puts greater emphasis on treatment and diversion. It also attempts to define the conditions of “last resort” under which police should arrest drug users.
The passage of the Council Bill places the state law on drug possession in Seattle’s Municipal Code. Public drug use or possession is punishable with up to 180-days in prison, and a maximum $1,000 fine. If you have two previous convictions for drug use, your maximum sentence can be increased to 364 day.
The council gave the Seattle City Attorney’s Office the authority to prosecute charges of drug possession by adopting the state law’s language into the city code. In Washington, drug possession was a crime. The King County Prosecutor had the authority to prosecute.
The Washington State Supreme Court, in 2021, ruled that the “felony drug possession” law was unconstitutional l, because it criminalized the “unknowing possess.”
The new law was passed by the in May 2023. It made public use and possession of marijuana a gross misdemeanor. The law encourages prosecutors and police officers to divert arrested people into treatment programs or other pretrial diversion opportunities, but it does not mandate this.
Seattle has been subject to the law since it was implemented statewide in July, but King County Prosecutor Leesa Manion said her office did not have the capacity to prosecute misdemeanor drugs crimes.
Seattle’s new laws attempts to define more clearly that police should almost never arrest people with substance abuse disorders and refer them to treatment, but only do so when they pose a danger to others.
Herbold said at the council meeting on Tuesday that “without passage of this law, arrests would increase, not decrease.” The threat of harm is intended to limit discretion that would otherwise be allowed by the Blake Fix.
The council members disagreed on how clear the bill should make it about arrest versus diversion. The bill originally stated that officers would determine whether an individual’s actions or conduct posed a danger to others.
Nelson’s successful amendment at the committee meeting on September 12 softened the directive. “Officers can determine” if someone is a danger to others, and “may attempt to contact, coordinate outreach efforts, and other alternative to arrest”.
Final guidance on when and how Seattle Police officers should divert drug users from the public to treatment or services, or arrest them, will be provided by an executive order issued Mayor Bruce Harrell. The Council bill outlined the intent of the new law. However, the Executive Branch has the legal authority to dictate Seattle Police Department policies.
After the new law has been passed, it is up to the police officers to decide when someone who uses drugs in public poses an immediate threat to other people and what action they should take.
Harrell has repeatedly stated that he views the drug crisis in terms of public health and wants to assist people with substance abuse disorders receive treatment and not put them in prison. Instead, he wants to focus on arresting dealers.
Seattle’s ability to expand the landscape of treatment and diversion options that are available, which is currently too small for the number of people who need it, will determine how many people receive the help they require.
Seattle’s main tool to divert someone into services is a LEAD model, which was formerly known as Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion but now stands for Let Everybody Advance with Dignity. LEAD is managed by Purpose action Dignity and allows police officers to refer low-level criminals to the nonprofit to receive case management and services.
Purpose action Dignity will receive $9.9million in the city budget for 2023 to carry out LEAD. An analysis by the city staff revealed that to meet all of the referrals with high priority that are eligible for case management, the city would need to spend $30 million per year on LEAD.
Seattle used to divert individuals to treatment and services through the Seattle Municipal Court Drug Court Program, which allowed them to receive treatment and services even if they had not pleaded guilty to a criminal offense. This spring, Davison , the City Attorney, announced that her office would not participate in this program. There have been talks among city leaders to reestablish some sort of municipal drug court. However, this hasn’t happened yet.
King County drug treatment providers and advocates say that the current treatment options for substance abuse disorders are not enough to help everyone.
Brandie Flood spoke at the hearing of the committee on September 12, supporting the bill, but saying that “for it to work there must be enough resources to divert the people.” There are not enough services available to link people with. If they want to move this forward, I urge them to provide enough resources to help connect people with treatment, housing and shelter, mental health services, better crisis support, etc.”
Inpatient treatment facilities are overcrowded, and people have to wait for days or even weeks before they can be admitted. The shortage of treatment providers is due to a high rate of turnover, mainly because the work is difficult and wages are low. Unhoused and housed people both suffer from substance abuse disorders. However, for homeless individuals, there are not enough affordable housing options and shelter spaces.
Harrell has allocated $20 million of Seattle’s settlement money for a lawsuit against opioid producers to expand treatment options for opioid use disorder. Harrell has announced that he will direct $7 million of federal funds not yet spent to treatment options. This includes establishing a overdose recovery center, and $1 million to expand Evergreen Treatment Services mobile medication-assisted therapy.
Mosqueda, who voted against the bill on Tuesday, expressed her concern that, because of a budget shortfall that is looming, there will be no significant funding for diversion or treatment in 2024, and that, as a result, arresting drug users would become the default option for police officers. Morales agreed with Mosqueda, calling the bill a “performance” and stating that “jailing people won’t address their drug addictions.”
The new law will take effect 30 days after the bill is passed.
Harrell intends to sign the bill as soon as possible, according to a spokesperson for the mayor’s office. He was unable to give a timeline for the executive order of the mayor directing SPD policies, but said that they were aiming to release the document within the next seven days.
The story was originally published by Crosscut.
Visit Crosscut.com/donate for local journalism that is nonprofit and freely distributed.
A new Oregon ballot proposal would roll back the drug decriminalization law that was approved by voters
The post Seattle Leaders Pass Law to Prosecute Public Drug Possession and Use first appeared on Marijuana Moment.
