B.C. court blocks new law against public drug use warning of 'irreparable harm'

The British Columbia Supreme Court has blocked new provincial laws against public consumption of illegal substances.

The British Columbia Supreme Court has blocked new provincial laws against public consumption of illegal substances.

The ruling in favour of the Harm Reduction Nurses Association imposes a temporary injunction until March 31, with the judge saying “irreparable harm will be caused” if the laws come into force.

The Restricting Public Consumption of Illegal Substances Act was passed by the legislature in November, allowing fines and imprisonment for people who refuse to comply with police orders not to consume drugs in certain public places.

The nurses association argued the act, which has yet to come into effect, would violate the Canadian Charter in various ways if enforced.

But Chief Justice Christopher Hinkson said in his ruling issued Friday that it was unnecessary to turn to those arguments, since the “balance of convenience” and the risk of irreparable harm weighed in the plaintiff's favour.

“I accept that lone drug use may be particularly dangerous due to an absence or a diminished degree of support in the event of an overdose,” Hinkson's ruling says.

“When people are isolated and out of sight, they are at a much higher risk of dying from an unreversed overdose.”