A British Columbia Supreme Court judge has tossed the convictions against Drug Use Liberation Front founders Jeremy Kalicum and Eris Nyx.
On Tuesday, Justice Catherine Murray sided with the pair, who filed a constitutional challenge after being found guilty of drug trafficking.
She argued that parts of Canada's Controlled Drugs and Substances Act violated Section 7 and Section 15 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
The former states that "everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of the person and the right not to be deprived thereof except in accordance with the principles of fundamental justice," while the latter states that "every individual is equal before and under the law and has the right to the equal protection and equal benefit of the law without discrimination."
"Mr. Kalicum and Ms. Nyx have borne the burden of bringing a successful constitutional challenge, thereby doing the public interest a service at considerable personal cost," Murray said, per CBC News, calling their actions "selfless."
She found that DULF did not pose a risk to public safety and instead helped those harmed by the toxic drug crisis.
Kalicum and Nyx bought drugs on the "dark web," then sold them to users mainly on the Downtown Eastside at cost after testing them to ensure they were not tainted. As a result, their "compassion club" was raided by police in 2023 and they were arrested.
Their constitutional challenge was filed on the grounds that closing their facility violated the rights of drug users by increasing the likelihood that they would use drugs tainted with other substances, such as fentanyl.
Murray's ruling was lauded by harm reduction and recovery advocate Guy Felicella, noting that it represents "an important recognition of what those of us on the front lines have been saying for years: the illicit drug supply is contaminated and deadly."
"If we’re serious about saving lives and preventing costly illnesses and injuries, people need access to a safer supply of the substances they’re addicted to," he told Sitka Media. "History has proven time and again that “Just Say No” doesn’t work. And while politicians and pundits have been engaged in ideological arguments, thousands of people have died."
Felicella argued that "we should all be grateful to Jeremy and Eris for, as the judge said, 'doing the public interest a service, at great personal cost'."
"I hope lawmakers listen to what this decision is saying and finally create a pathway for lifesaving alternatives," he added.
Murray suspended her ruling for six months to give Parliament time to create a plan that would allow safer supply providers such as DULF to operate.
