https://www.ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/news/2021/11/30/new-york-city-allows-opening-of-safe-illegal-drug-use-sites--first-in-the-nationhttps://nypost.com/2021/12/01/smoking-crack-cocaine-sanctioned-at-nyc-safe-injection-sites/NYC is now officially operating the nation's first government authorized, private nonprofit illegal supervised drug use site. Such places have been more common around Europe, but none have operated openly in modern US history. Many obviously exist without official sanction, and even with the recognition of police who simply don't enforce the laws- George Floyd Square and its surroundings come to mind- but NYC is making the bold move to have the government operate one. Philadelphia last attempted one in February last year, but it was shut down by neighborhood opposition before the plan could take off. While other cities have debated it, Philadelphia actually attempted it also back in 2019, the private nonprofit organization Safehouse trying to open one with government recognition. And that attempt was scuttled by the Department of Justice, who filed a civil lawsuit citing that operating supervised illegal drug use sites is itself illegal under the "Crackhouse Statute"
And what is the "Crackhouse Statute"? 21 USC § 856, which forbids the opening, leasing, renting, using or maintaining of any place for manufacturing, distributing or using any controlled substance.
Codified into law in 1986 in the Anti-Drug Abuse Act, it was authored by senator Joseph R. Biden Jr. It was amended again in 2003 in the Illicit Drug Anti-Proliferation Act of 2003, again authored by senator Joseph R. Biden Jr- the amendment expanded it to include temporary use and add civil penalties.
Now comes the showdown. Will President Joe Biden's administration enforces the federal law of the land that was written by Senator Joe Biden?