Police implementing crackdown on open drug use in Winnipeg neighbourhoods

A Winnipeg Police Service cruiser is shown in an undated file image. (CTV News Winnipeg)

Winnipeg police are cracking down on open drug use in the city.

A recently launched initiative will see officers increasing their presence in several neighbourhoods targeting drug trafficking and drug use. Police have said the initiative is in response to multiple community concerns and public safety issues reported to them.

“These issues are affecting people’s sense of safety, their well-being, and their confidence in the community,” said Winnipeg Police Chief Gene Bowers on Friday.

“The message we hear most often is frustration and the feeling that not enough is being done. It’s important we acknowledge that reality.”

Since the initiative launched, police have had 100 interactions with people using drugs in public spaces and have made 25 arrests, with two specifically related to drug trafficking or possession.

Police have also taken three people to the protective care centre.

Bowers has also acknowledged there is an addiction crisis going on in the city.

“Addiction is a health issue,” he said. “Behind every instance of public drug use is a person, someone who may be dealing with trauma, mental health challenges, or significant hardship. These are members of our community too, and they need compassion, support and a pathway to recovery.”

Winnipeg Mayor Scott Gillingham said he was supportive of the police service’s effort to crack down on open drug use and trafficking.

“Open illegal drug use in public spaces cannot become normal in Winnipeg,” he said.

Gillingham said drugs such as fentanyl are being used in bus shelters, parks and other areas, including outside city hall.

“I’ve grown tired of looking out my office window and seeing the same thing,” he said.

Gillingham added, “People should not have to breathe in toxic drug smoke while waiting for a bus. Parents should not have to worry about needles in the park. Business owners should not have to deal with open drug use on their front doorstep, and people struggling with addiction should not be left in these conditions either.”

‘A criminalization of poverty’

Lorie English, the executive director of the West Central Women’s Resource Centre, has criticized the initiative.

Speaking with CTV News on Thursday, English said she had heard people accessing supports around Main Street, Logan Avenue and Higgins Avenue are being detained by police and having their belongings searched and seized.

“I think this represents a criminalization of poverty and of homelessness, and that’s deeply concerning to us,” she said. “It shows up to us as a human rights violation.”

English has also been told people being detained are having harm reduction supplies seized, which is concerning due to rising HIV cases in Manitoba that resulted in a public health emergency declaration. The detentions are also happening near a health clinic on Main Street, which English said could prevent people from accessing health care if they need it.

“When we target people in neighbourhoods where they know they can access health care, social service supports, a community safety network, what we really do is take away their options to exist safely in our city, whether they’re using substances or not,” she said.

“We push people into back alleys and corners where they can’t be monitored.”

Instead of detaining people, English said the focus should be on harm reduction strategies, such as supervised consumption sites, increasing access to harm reduction supplies and more investments in housing.

Bowers said in retrospect, police could have given partner organizations and community groups notice that they were starting the initiative.

“I’ve reached out so we could sit down together and work towards helping people who are being devastated by the drugs on our streets.”