Enforcement and Justice

The Enforcement and Justice Pillar addresses community safety, crime and disorder resulting from substance use.

Who is involved?

This pillar includes partnerships with police, courts, corrections, and community reintegration services.

What work is being done?

Partners working in this pillar play a crucial role in shifting the dialogue and focus of enforcement and justice from focusing on individuals using substances who are encountering the justice system to a broader social determinants of health lens.

Concentrating on drug trafficking, diversion programs, and supporting community understanding of legal rights when helping someone who has overdosed continue to be critical within this pillar.

Examples of strategies in the Enforcement and Justice Pillar

• Work to improve community awareness of the Good Samaritan Drug Overdose Act which became law in May 2017 to reduce the number of fatal overdoses.
• Exploration of Justice System Diversion Strategies. The Waterloo Region Drug Treatment Courts (DTC) were established to address the root causes of crime as related addiction. The DTC provides access to drug, alcohol and other treatment and rehabilitation services as well as supporting services including mental health treatment, family therapy and job skills training.
• Exploration of other diversion programs, including the Law Enforcement Assisted Diversion (LEAD) program in Seattle. This program aims to address low-level drug and other crimes by re-directing offenders to community-based supports instead of jail.