COPS NOT ADHERING TO OVERDOSE POLICY

An advocate for drug users says she's heard from addicts that some
police officers are continuing to attend drug overdose calls, despite
a new policy to discontinue the practice.

Ann Livingston, project coordinator for the Vancouver Area Network of
Drug Users (VANDU), said addicts are still afraid to call 911 if
someone overdoses because they don't want to be hassled or taken to
jail by police.

"When you get drug users together, they'll say things like this,
'Don't just call 911, if you can revive the guy, do it, because he
might have warrants for his arrest.' That's crazy, but I know why
they're doing it."

Last November, police agreed to only respond to drug overdoses if
they're fatal, or if public safety is endangered. Drug overdose
deaths reportedly dropped by six per cent after police in South
Australia implemented the same policy. The theory is that addicts are
more likely to call 911 if they don't have to worry about facing a drug charge.

Vancouver police Insp. Ken Frail, a 10-year veteran of the Downtown
Eastside, said one reason officers may still be turning up at
overdoses is that the information is broadcast over police radios
that an ambulance is en route. "Depending on the location of where
the overdose is, there's nothing that prevents a police officer from
stopping by to make sure the crew is OK, or we may be familiar with
an area that's particularly dangerous, so we'll attend."

The goal is not to attend "routine" overdoses, which means ones that
don't involve weapons, screaming or yelling or fights, said Frail,
adding officers are still being educated about the new policy. "It
will take a while-that we don't get rushing to every overdose call.

"It's a change in our culture, and it's a change in the culture on
the street. Let's put it this way, everyone wants to point the finger
at us, and say we attend overdose calls and lay charges. I have not
found a police officer who has ever laid a charge at an overdose
call. So who's got the misperception?"

Frail said it's too early to tell if the new policy is making a
difference. "But I can tell you when this was discussed four years
ago, this was kind of like a crazy notion. Now it's well accepted by
seasoned police officers as a common sense thing to do."

Five more people died of drug overdoses in Vancouver last year than
in 2002, but fatalities are nowhere near the rates they were during
the epidemic in the 1990s. Last year's 54 deaths in the city were
significantly down from the 191 recorded in 1998, according to
statistics released by the B.C. Coroners' Service.

Across the province, 172 people died last year of illicit drug use,
down from 417 in 1998. Of the 172 who died, 35 were female and 137
were male. Frail credits the work done by a number of agencies for
the decline in deaths, including street nurses, paramedics, community
organizations and police cracking down on drug dealers, along with
the opening of a supervised injection site.

"There's a whole mix down here, and it's very often difficult to
separate one thing from another because a whole bunch of agencies are
trying a whole bunch of initiatives at the same time."

Livingston said VANDU's ongoing campaign to educate addicts about
dangerous habits like sharing needles and shooting up alone is
another factor in keeping people alive.

"It was so bad down here for a while that numbers of deaths couldn't
but go down."

Surrey and Victoria have also seen decreases. Surrey's drug deaths
dropped to 14 last year from 31 in 1998, while Victoria recorded 15
fatal overdoses in 2003, down from 26 in 1998. Overdose victims in
B.C. were also more likely to die on a Saturday, followed by Monday
and Wednesday. Of the 172 who overdosed last year, the largest
number-25-died in August.