PORTLAND, Ore. ( KOIN ) – It’s official: Drug possession is once again illegal in Oregon.
The state’s new drug law to decriminalize the possession of small amounts of hard drugs went into effect on Sunday , effectively reversing the voter-approved Measure 110 that has been the subject of controversy for years.
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The new law, House Bill 4002, gives people the choice between being charged and treatment when they are caught carrying drugs like fentanyl and meth. Treatment includes completing a behavioral health screening and participating in a “ deflection program ” in order to sidestep fines.
“They should have never decriminalized it in the first place because now they’ve got worse than a pandemic on their hands of addicts…that are stuck in a rut and believe it’s OK to do drugs,” Steven Coleman, a person experiencing homelessness, said. “How you gonna arrest somebody that you told it was OK to do drugs, and now suddenly, it’s not OK to do drugs?”