Opioids: federal prosecutor tries to stop nation's first 'safe site' for injection

[Eugene]

LBN thread: U.S. Attorney to act on supervised injection sites in Philadelphia

Related: Civil Lawsuit Filed to Seek Judicial Declaration that Drug Injection Site Is Illegal Under Federal Law (U.S. Attorney's Office - Eastern District of Pennsylvania)

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Source: Associated Press

Opioids: federal prosecutor tries to stop nation's first 'safe site' for injection

Associated Press
Thu 7 Feb 2019 02.49 GMT

The top federal prosecutor in Philadelphia has filed suit to stop a not-for-profit organization from opening a first-in-the-nation supervised drug injection site to address the city’s opioid problem.

The lawsuit pits the US attorney William McSwain’s stance on safe injection sites against those of Philadelphia’s mayor, district attorney and a former Pennsylvania governor. McSwain believes supporters should try to change the laws, not break them.

“Normalizing the use of deadly drugs like heroin and fentanyl is not the answer to solving the epidemic,” McSwain said at a Wednesday news conference, while protesters gathered outside his office on Independence Mall.

They said thousands of people could die of overdoses in Philadelphia in the time it might take to change the law.

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Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2019/feb/06/opioid-philadelphia-safe-injection-site