City of Regina opts into Saskatchewan’s Safe Public Spaces Act

Regina City Council voted to opt into the Safe Public Spaces Act on Wednesday.

The act was introduced in August by the Government of Saskatchewan in a move aiming to regulate the possession, transportation and storage of items that could be deemed “street weapons.” The legislation grants police officers the power to seize weapons like knives, machetes and bear spray, but also extends the definition of street weapons to include drugs like fentanyl and methamphetamine, along with hypodermic needles.

Read more:

• Sask. legislation would classify fentanyl, meth, needles as ‘street weapons’
• Province welcomes legislation to target street weapons, dangerous drugs
• Regina police board recommends city opt into Safe Public Spaces Act

Communities around the province were given the option to opt in to the act, and Saskatoon adopted the legislation in August.

Mayor Chad Bachynski and councillors Clark Bezo (Ward 10), Mark Burton (Ward 4), Jason Mancinelli (Ward 9), Shobna Radons (Ward 7), Dan Rashovich (Ward 1) and George Tsiklis voted in favour of the move, while councillors Victoria Flores (Ward 6) and Shanon Zachidniak (Ward 8) voted against it.

Councillors Sarah Turnbull (Ward 5) and David Froh (Ward 3) declared that they had abstained, but administration explained that abstentions would be official recorded as a “no.”

The inclusion of needles drew concern from a host of delegates who addressed council on Wednesday, with many saying the act wouldn’t help public safety at all, and could actually endanger lives.

“This is a policy that is driven by shared fears and not shared values,” said Tiro Mthembu.

“In Regina, we value harm reduction. Harm reduction is health care, and so I urge you to opt out of this.”

Adopting the act act was recommended to council by the Regina Board of Police Commissioners, but Mthembu said there weren’t any community consultation on the consequences.

Speaking on behalf of AIDS Programs South Saskatchewan, Vidya Dhar Reddy said treating needles as a weapon would create barriers to fighting against the spread of afflictions like HIV, hepatitis, syphilis and drug toxicity deaths.

“It’s just going to perpetuate stigma, punishment and loss,” Reddy said.

Acting police chief Lorilee Davies, Regina’s acting police chief, said the act does not give police additional powers to conduct searches. (Lisa Schick/980 CJME)

Reddy said needles being treated as weapons could result in more needle sharing, which would increase the spread of diseases.

Many of the delegates expressed concerns about the potential criminalization of those carrying naloxone or insulin, and also stated that Indigenous people would likely bear the brunt of the negative consequences the said would arise from adopting the act.

Lorilee Davies, Regina’s acting police chief, said the city’s police force has no interest in charging people for simple, small drug possession, as police aim to target high-level traffickers who bring large quantities of drugs into the city for sale.

“Operationally, I do not see that changing with the introduction of this legislation in the City of Regina,” Davies said.

Davies added that the legislation will not affect those who are carrying needles for medical or veterinary reasons.

“We will not be taking people’s Narcan. We will not be taking people’s insulin. It is not outlined or the intention of the Regina Police Service, certainly in this regard,” Davies said.

The acting police chief argued that not opting in would take away a tool that could help police deal with problems like bear spray.

After hearing concerns from numerous delegates, several councillors expressed a desire to table the discussion in order to allow for more time to digest the information and consult with the community, saying they felt constrained by the fact that it was brought to council as a yes or no decision.

Zachidniak moved to table the matter until March, but the motion was defeat 6-5, with Zachidniak, Turnbull, Froh, Bachynski and Flores voting in favour, while Burton, Bezo, Mancinelli, Radons, Tsiklis and Rashovich were opposed.

After the meeting, Bachynski said he felt there were more pros to opting in than cons, and said the city still recognizes the value of harm reduction.

“I have full confidence in Regina police. We heard today iterated multiple times that (seizing insulin or medicine) is not the intent. That’s not what we do today, and that’s not what we intend to do in the future,” Bachynski said.

“Ultimately, it’s up to Regina police to continue to demonstrate that trust in the way that (they) operate.”