Marijuana legalization has helped police focus on enforcement for other substances, members of the Orillia Police Services Board (OPSB) heard this week.
“Possession is down,” said Orillia OPP Staff Sergeant Rob Baskey, during a presentation to the board about local crime statistics. “If there is a change there, I would say it's because of the legalization of marijuana.”
The statistics showed there had been a 66% drop in the number of possession charges year over year and a 64% drop in the year-to-date numbers for possession.
While that's good news, the bad news is that possession of other more lethal drugs is on the rise.
“I think it's a pretty good indicator that enforcement has changed from simply cannabis possession to cocaine, fentanyl, MDMA,” said Baskey, adding opioids are the big crisis for the area. “Those are the overwhelming types of drugs that appear in the results.”
The one thing he did note as cause for celebration was the seizure of two loaded 9mm handguns.
“When we take a gun off the street, police officers celebrate and deserve a pat on their backs,” said Baskey. “It's a big deal for us to take a gun off the streets. I know it's not the only one, but certainly doesn't happen at every search warrant.”
Baskey noted there was a 250% increase in theft over $5,000 cases for April 2018 and April of this year, he said. He couldn’t comment on the exact causes underlying these incidents, but he said it was likely related to social issues.
“Certainly in Orillia, we're aware of homelessness and food insecurity,” he noted. “All of those things came out in a 2014/2015 report by the United Way. We took that to heart and started to work on it (through the Orillia Community Action Network). Those social issues would certainly lead to an increase," said Baskey.
As for the increase in theft under $5,000 cases, Baskey said, “I can't say for sure, but if you looked at it, those numbers go up and down through the course of the year.
“Maybe it's a difficult time in April,” he added. “That's the time when there's less outdoor work for people. There might be higher unemployment at that time, which leads to all of those other social issues, like housing and food security, and acutely elevates risk of someone having to take drastic measures to provide for their family.”
In conclusion, Baskey noted crime stats fluctuate year round and he said there is no cause for concern.
