City can’t even ban outdoor drug use. Mayor backtracks

By Taxpayers Association of Oregon
OregonWatchdog.com

Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler proposed a ban on open-air public drug use.  That was met with a backlash from liberal activists.

Now, Mayor Wheeler has pulled the proposal.

Wheeler says a new law passed in the Legislature, which helped to close a loophole and criminalize fentanyl (within a certain weight/number) that was previous legal.

The current law still allows people in Portland to use small amounts of fentanyl in public without criminal penalties.  So what Wheeler is saying doesn’t make full sense.

OPB reports, “In a press statement, Wheeler said that his proposed ban would have “undoubtedly” been challenged in court due to this state law.“Nonetheless, I was willing to take that fight to the courts, if necessary,” he said. Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler at a city council meeting on May 31, 2023.Wheeler said he’s instead confident that a new state bill will address his concerns with Measure 110. That legislation, House Bill 2645, makes it a criminal misdemeanor to possess one gram or more or five or more pills of any substance containing fentanyl, a synthetic opioid. This type of “Class A” misdemeanor comes with up to a year in jail or a $6,250 fine.”

So even if Wheeler does pass the common sense ban, liberal judges will toss it.

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