Stateline - Oregon voters in 2020 passed Measure 110, a first-in-the-nation law decriminalizing the possession of small amounts of controlled substances such as heroin, methamphetamines, cocaine and fentanyl. Three years later, public drug use has wearied even the most tolerant of Oregonians. In recent months, Portland has reeled from a record number of opioid overdoses, bad press and a drop in convention and hotel bookings linked to the perception that the city is disorderly and unsafe.
Now, the Oregon law faces significant overhaul or repeal, a prospect likely to slow movements in other states to treat addiction as a public health matter, not a criminal one....What went wrong? A state audit found that the law’s rollout was beset by bureaucratic fumbles and a short implementation timeline; a study also has shown the measure’s civil ticketing approach had tepid law enforcement support. More critically, it coincided with a national fentanyl crisis that overwhelmed the country — not just Oregon — with a cheap, addictive and deadly drug.
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