Category: Overdose Crisis

A man wearing dark clothing stands behind a table with syringes and trays of other medical supplies. The words

Reporter Sylvie Sturm has reported in depth in recent years for the Public Press’ podcast, “Civic,” examining why San Francisco and other localities struggle to control an epidemic of deaths and disability caused by addiction to street drugs, as well as efforts to think creatively about solutions.
Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Health, Law & Justice, Overdose Crisis

DA’s Opposition to Drug Diversion Programs Undermines Public Safety, Say Legal Advocates

Avatar photo by Sylvie Sturm

San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins has criticized and diminished the use of diversion programs that offer criminal defendants accused of selling drugs rehabilitation, counseling and training rather than jail sentences.

Since taking office 15 months ago, Jenkins has reduced the number of referrals to the San Francisco Pretrial Diversion Project by 70%, according to its CEO David Mauroff.

And as San Francisco’s rate of overdose fatalities reaches more than two deaths a day, Jenkins is pushing for defendants accused of selling drugs to remain in jail. But some legal experts say that’s a bad strategy both for the defendants and for public safety.

Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Health, Law & Justice, Overdose Crisis

Drug Crackdown Has Sparked Violent Turf Warfare in Central San Francisco, Supervisor Says

Avatar photo by Sylvie Sturm

A drug crackdown in the Tenderloin and South of Market has resulted in more than 600 arrests, with authorities seizing more than 200 pounds of fentanyl since the initiative launched in May, Mayor London Breed said.

But the coordinated effort, involving city and state law enforcement agents, appears to be leading to violent clashes, said Supervisor Dean Preston, whose district includes the Tenderloin. “They’re poking a hornet’s nest,” he said in an interview.

Posted in“Civic” Podcast, Health, Homelessness, Housing, Overdose Crisis, Social Services

SF ‘Failing’ on Housing as Overdose Solution, Health Expert Says

Avatar photo by Sylvie Sturm

Sarah Evans has spent decades advancing drug overdose prevention initiatives around the world. As a division director for Open Society Foundations — a grantmaking network founded and chaired by business magnate George Soros — Evans promotes one surefire way to help abate San Francisco’s homelessness and fatal overdose crisis: housing.

“The way that people get off the street is by getting into housing, where people can get support and stay there even while they are continuing to struggle with substance use disorders of all kinds and mental health issues,” said Evans, who leads the organization’s drug policy programs globally. “It literally is the only way.”

San Francisco isn’t doing enough to meet this housing need, according to health experts.

Posted in“Civic” Podcast, City Hall, Health, History, Homelessness, Overdose Crisis, Social Services

San Francisco’s Fatal Overdose Crisis Was Decades in the Making

Avatar photo by Sylvie Sturm

As San Francisco continues to search for solutions, our team at “Civic” is exploring the origins of the city’s opioid overdose crisis, what has been done to help and what might be making things worse. After six months of research involving hundreds of studies, reports and archival news clippings, and three dozen interviews with people with lived experience and professional expertise in homelessness, addiction, medicine, criminal justice, housing, social work, street outreach, business, education, harm reduction, policymaking and advocacy, we’re launching the series, “San Francisco and the Overdose Crisis.”

Over six episodes, the series will explore what influenced rampant opioid addiction and its connection to homelessness, the 150-year history of policing and prosecuting drugs in San Francisco, the long battle to open a safe consumption site in the city, and grassroots efforts to stem the tide of drug-related fatalities. 

Posted inCity Hall, Health, Law & Justice, News, Overdose Crisis

Supervisor Defends Dropping Support for Addiction-Treatment Centers

Avatar photo by Sylvie Sturm

Supervisor Matt Dorsey received backlash this month for asking the mayor to redirect the entire $18.9 million in city funding budgeted for a new drop-in addiction treatment center toward jails instead.

Dorsey told the San Francisco Public Press that he reversed his previous support for the centers — called wellness hubs — once the city’s plans narrowed to one site from six, and removed safe consumption sites, which would have allowed people to consume drugs under supervision so they could receive immediate help in case of overdose.

Dorsey said he now wants the funds to go toward jail health services, including forcing treatment for people in jail who are struggling with substance abuse disorder.

Posted inCity Hall, Health, Law & Justice, Overdose Crisis, Social Services

City Leaders at Odds as Overdose Deaths Trending Toward Record High

Avatar photo by Sylvie Sturm

Accidental drug overdose deaths continue to torment San Francisco, according to data released Tuesday by the city medical examiner’s office.

While June saw the lowest monthly number of overdose deaths this year, 54, in July it climbed back up to 71. With 473 overdose deaths this year, San Francisco is on track to surpass its highest recorded number of overdose deaths in a calendar year — 725 in 2020.

Posted inCity Hall, Health, Law & Justice, Overdose Crisis, Public Safety

Military-Style Drug War in Tenderloin Sparks Fears That More Drug Users Could Overdose

Avatar photo by Sylvie Sturm

Last week’s deployment of the National Guard and California Highway Patrol onto San Francisco’s streets to crack down on drugs comes amid intense public pressure to address open air drug use and sales.

But the emphasis on law enforcement for addressing the city’s drug crisis has distressed public defense attorneys and harm reduction advocates who fear the move may worsen the rate of fatal overdoses.

Posted inHealth, Homelessness, Overdose Crisis, Public Safety, Social Services

With Overdose Deaths Surging, Critics Chide City, State for Curbing Safe Consumption Centers

Avatar photo by Sylvie Sturm

San Francisco’s chief medical examiner delivered grim statistics last week about a recent increase in deaths related to drug use. In the first three months of the year, 200 people died of accidental overdose. That’s up significantly from the first quarter last year, with 142 deaths.

These tragedies were disproportionately suffered by marginalized groups. The biggest increase in deaths occurred among those who lacked housing. People listed as having “no fixed address” accounted for 61 overdose deaths in the first quarter, up from 26 during the same period in 2022. Black residents accounted for 33% of fatal overdoses in the first quarter this year, despite representing only 5% of the city’s population.

Addiction experts say the recent increase in overdose deaths could be linked to the closure of the Tenderloin Linkage Center, a temporary facility that operated in United Nations Plaza from January to December 2022 to help drug users and people without housing access supportive services.

Gift this article