Renton understands and appreciates that by enacting Engrossed Senate Bill 5476 during the 2021 Session legislators were responding to a State Supreme Court decision. They were also searching for ways to address drug offenses through alternative treatment solutions that avoid incarceration.
Those are laudable goals, and city officials appreciate lawmakers establishing a June 30, 2023, sunset date on the new statute so that an evaluation can be done on its effectiveness.
Unfortunately, Renton and many other cities are experiencing significant increases in criminal activity since the enactment of ESB 5476. The statute is not working, either in protecting public safety or in providing treatment and services to those who need it.
Instead, cities such as Renton are seeing a significant spike in public calls for a police response to open drug use and an overwhelming increase in complaints from our community members.
There is a critical need to retool and strengthen the ESB 5476 laws so the public and judicial system have a more effective way of intervening, handling drug offenses, and getting attention, treatment, and services for those who need them. Renton shares the goal of directing violators toward help and not toward incarceration, but believes the key is through accountability and the court system.
Renton sees the following flaws in the current ESB 5476 statute that make it ineffective:
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Because ESB 5476 stipulates that (at a minimum) the first two drug offenses be non-criminal in nature, it does not mandate any treatment or services for the offender. Asking an individual suffering from addiction to make this choice at a time and place when they are often unable to make sound decisions results in a refusal of treatment in nearly every encounter, leaving both the offender and the public in the same, often dangerous, environment.
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Law enforcement is still being asked and expected to maintain safety in our communities. However, officers are unable to take the necessary steps to bring an individual to treatment and thus not resolving the public’s original request. This erodes public trust in law enforcement.
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There is no program or process to track the number of treatment referrals occurring across jurisdictions. Additionally, due to the state of mind of an offender during an encounter, it is not typical that identification is provided willingly or accurately for tracking purposes, thus making the process that relies on this information flawed from the start.
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Community residents and business leaders feel less safe, and violators are much less likely to get the help they need to address addiction, mental health challenges, or other underlying issues beneath the drug use that is occurring.
Renton urges that reforms be made to ESB 5476 to address these issues with an approach of taking action that leads to help, not incarceration. The city’s specific ideas include:
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Restore accountability to the system and remove what ends up being a voluntary approach with first- and second-offense diversions.
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Adopt a solutions-based philosophy that enables law enforcement to intervene and take enforcement actions including a “custodial action” (arrest) when legally authorized and appropriate. The preference of South King County cities is to start with a gross misdemeanor.
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Establish court-driven solutions to prescribe treatment/services that:
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Offer a deferred sentence on 1st and 2nd offenses, with a willingness to have this extended to additional offenses.
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Defer any sentence for offenders who enter a court-approved treatment program containing accountability requirements similar to DUI courts.
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Reward those who complete court requirements, including a substance abuse assessment, with expungement of any record of conviction for the offense.
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Emphasize and stress the role of court, ensuring there are significant additional resources to go with an enhanced court-services system.
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Establish a statewide database and tracking system so that any revised approach in the law is measured, monitored, and based on performance metrics.
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Combine these efforts with enhanced funding for behavioral health, including increased resources for mental health field response teams.
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Explore complementary funding through “988” and use of the State’s portion of opioid settlement revenues. Opioid settlement funding provided to cities and counties could be used as a local match.
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As a fallback, there should still be penalties for repeat offenders or those who refuse help and/or do not complete treatment/service programs.
Renton’s experience in the current ESB 5476 climate
Renton Police are seeing the most noticeable failures of the current ESB 5476 approach in the city’s downtown core. Renton police began emphasis patrols last January, following a significant increase in complaints of open drug use, resident and visitors’ heightened concerns over safety, and reports from businesses that the downtown core was being avoided entirely due to these concerns.
One method that Renton Police used to address drug complaints involved contact with homeless individuals in the downtown area. During ongoing emphasis patrols to address the complaints, police contacted 350 people and offered drug and housing resources. Fewer than 10 agreed to the referral and it is unknown how many met with a provider. While the use of a mental health navigator combined with a law enforcement presence could potentially increase these numbers, the problem is that the voluntary-compliance system is a flawed one.
In Renton’s case, officers continued emphasis patrols in the area, enforcing associated crimes such as theft, trespassing, and the delivery of narcotics with minimal impact. Based on the interaction between law enforcement and those contacted for drug use/possession, those using drugs feel emboldened knowing there is little in the way of consequences for their activity. Residents and business owners also witness this behavior and continually experience their calls for help going unresolved.