Police say two Vancouver drug policy advocates face trafficking charges

VANCOUVER — Two founders of a Vancouver drug advocacy group that distributed what they said were safe doses of heroin, cocaine and methamphetamines to prevent overdoses have been charged with trafficking following police raids last year.

Vancouver police said in a statement Friday that members of the Drug Users Liberation Front have spoken publicly about drug trafficking.

Police said charges of possession for the purpose of trafficking were approved on May 31 against Jeremy Kalicum, 28, and Eris Nyx, 33, who are the co-founders of DULF.

The police statement said Kalicum and Nyx each faced three counts of trafficking and will be in court on July 2.

Police executed search warrants at DULF’s Downtown Eastside offices last October, as well as two homes related to the investigation.

At the time, the group’s website said its “fulfilment center” allowed drug users to receive up to 14 grams of cocaine, heroin or methamphetamine per week, with the substances tested for safety before being sold “at a cost” .

At a press conference in August 2023, Nyx said the group distributed 201 doses in its first month of operation and would continue distribution despite not obtaining a legal exemption.

The group called for the same mechanism that allows supervised safe consumption sites to operate legally in Vancouver and for BC to pilot the decriminalization of small amounts of drugs.

Neither Nyx, Kalicum nor their attorney immediately responded to a request for comment.

Vancouver Coastal Health’s website says the Drug User Liberation Front Society received $200,000 in public funding in 2021-2022.

Attorney General Mike Farnworth said the contract awarded to DULF was for “drug testing,” not drug buying, and when the government found out it had done so, the contract was canceled.

Earlier this year, Nyx and Kalicum were among the authors of a research paper that looked at 47 people who used the unauthorized compassion club.

The paper, published in the International Journal of Drug Policy, concluded that participation in the DULF program was associated with a reduction in non-fatal overdoses as well as overdoses involving the administration of naloxone.

Hundreds of people took part in a protest demanding a safe supply of illicit drugs after the arrests of Nyx and Kalicum, arguing that DULF is saving people’s lives.

More than 14,500 people in British Columbia have died of drug overdoses since the public health emergency was declared eight years ago.

Last year, a panel convened by B.C.’s chief medical examiner, Lisa Lapointe, recommended the establishment of safe over-the-counter supply programs to reduce deaths, but the idea was quickly rejected by the province.

At the time of last year’s raids, VPD said it supported progressive drug policies and believed harm reduction strategies had reduced the number of people killed by toxic drugs, but organizations had to follow the law.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published on July 7, 2024.

Ashley Joannou, Canadian Press