Editorial: Multnomah Countys Measure 110 redux [Video]

Amid the exploding fentanyl crisis and growing anger over Measure 110′s failed drug decriminalization experiment, Oregon legislators threw counties a lifeline. With House Bill 4002, lawmakers re-established drug possession as a crime, adding back some of the accountability levers that had been missing. But legislators also emphasized the need to keep a health-first focus, urging counties to adopt alternative pathways that would “deflect” drug users to treatment rather than send them through the criminal justice system.

Unfortunately, Multnomah County officials seem intent on going down with the ship. Led by Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson, a small group including outgoing District Attorney Mike Schmidt and Multnomah County Sheriff Nicole Morrisey O’Donnell, has been privately meeting to draw up plans for a deflection program in advance of HB 4002′s Sept. 1 effective date, as The Oregonian/OregonLive’s Noelle Crombie reported. What they’ve come up with, however, smacks of a Measure 110 redux that fails to …