TY  - JOUR
PY  - 2024//
TI  - 'It has gotten a lot better, but it is still bad': experiences with the police among marginalized PWUDs in a context of depenalization
JO  - International journal on drug policy
A1  - Kammersgaard, Tobias
A1  - Kappel, Nanna
A1  - Johansen, Katrine Schepelern
A1  - Kronbæk, Mette
A1  - Fahnøe, Kristian Relsted
A1  - Houborg, Esben
SP  - e104393
EP  - e104393
VL  - 127
IS  - 
N2  - Based on a survey (n = 249) and qualitative interviews (n = 38) with marginalized people who use drugs (PWUDs) in Copenhagen, Denmark, we investigate the experiences of this group with the police in a context where drug possession had been depenalized in and around drug consumption rooms (DCRs). Our findings point to positive experiences with the police, especially with the local community police in the depenalization zone, who refrained from drug law enforcement and practiced 'harm reduction policing.' However, marginalized PWUDs also reported that they were still targeted for drug possession by other sections of the police despite the depenalization policy. Specifically, the drug squad of the police would continue to confiscate illicit drugs for investigatory purposes to counter organized drug crime, as well as continue to target user-dealers who were not formally included in the depenalization policy. The findings illustrate how marginalized PWUDs still found themselves in a precarious legal situation without any legal rights to possess the drugs that they were dependent on, even though possession of drugs had been depenalized in and around DCRs.<p />  <p>Language: en</p>
LA  - en
SN  - 0955-3959
UR  - http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.drugpo.2024.104393
ID  - ref1
ER  -