In November 2020, Oregon voters elected to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of drugs, including heroin and cocaine. State-wide treatment centres would enable addiction to be handled as a healthcare, rather than a law enforcement issue. Law enforcement officers now report a drug-driven increase in criminality including assaults, possession of illegal firearms and prostitution on Oregon streets. Officers report a single arrest during which 500 fentanyl pills, 44 firearms, two of which were machine guns, and 1,000 grams of methamphetamine were seized. Further, criminal organizations operating in these areas have been largely legitimized through the adopted measures and gun violence has increased, with drug legalization having created an environment in which criminality is tolerated and is able to flourish.
