We shouldn’t punish police for attempting to save lives

As president of the Peel Regional Police Association, I am deeply disappointed in the two Special Investigations Unit investigations into deaths where police have administered naloxone to individuals experiencing an overdose that have occurred in our region over the past month.

Peel Regional police officers were equipped with naloxone kits in June 2017 for use in situations where an individual is experiencing a potentially life-threatening overdose. The kits have been used by Peel Regional police officers 21 times since they were deployed across the service, and 19 of those 21 times they were successful in reversing the overdose effects. The only two occurrences where they failed have since been the subject of SIU investigations.

This happened at a time when Canada is experiencing an opioid crisis, and the number of instanc- es of police being called to attend to overdoses is steadily increasing. According to recent data released by the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC), in 2016 there were 2,946 deaths across the country believed to stem from opioids, and at least 2,923 from January to September 2017. The vast majority of them were accidental. PHAC estimates that the total number of deaths in 2017 will have been in excess of 4,000.

If police are being equipped with naloxone, they should never need to second-guess whether administering this life-saving drug could result in them being charged with a crime.

Let me be clear: the Peel Regional Police Association strongly believes in the necessity and accountability of police oversight. However, oversight isn’t the issue at hand. It is important to note that these two individuals suffering from overdoses were not in custody or under arrest. Police were called to attend.

Once it was determined that a life-threatening overdose had occurred, an attempt was made to save the lives of these individuals by administering naloxone. Police are often called upon to administer emergency first aid. Administering naloxone is the same as a performing CPR or using a defibrillator if the situation requires such actions.

We are pleased that the first SIU investigation into police-administered naloxone was recently terminated. But we need to consider the ramifications of it being opened in the first place.

When the SIU opens these investigations, it costs Ontario taxpayers a significant amount of money. There are generally four to five full-time investigators assigned to the case, officers have to hold scenes for much longer than usual in order for the SIU to attend and evaluate, and the officers involved need to obtain legal representation. The primary officers are also subjected to undue stress during the investigations.

In British Columbia, the Independent Investigations Office enacted a policy nearly two years ago that eliminates the requirement for police officers to contact the IIO if they unsuccessfully attempted to save someone’s life by administering naloxone or performing CPR, unless force was used or the individual was in handcuffs before the onset of medical distress.

The Peel Regional Police Association is calling on the SIU to develop a policy similar to that of the IIO.

Police officers across Ontario need to be reassured that they can act quickly to save lives in unpredictable situations and won’t be subjected to costly and stressful investigations as a result.