The position on decriminalization with regard to simple possession is trying to understand that putting handcuffs on someone who suffers with an addiction is not going to solve the problems. It's going to temporarily take them out of the stream, but that's all it's going to do. Unless there's a way we can get them the help they need, recidivism is going to happen and they're going to be back in that stream.
Often, people who possess the amount of drugs for simple possession are fuelling their own substance use disorder. We've said before that, many times, they're not criminals by nature. That's not to say they're not involved in crime or highly susceptible to being victimized, just by virtue of the fact that they're in that drug world.
If we can get them the help they need, which often means.... Drugs and addiction are not necessarily a root cause. The trauma that causes people to become addicted is the root cause. It is a big process and the people who need help have to want help as much as the people who are giving help, but if we can find a way to help them get healthy.... It's not even necessarily that it frees up resources to do something else, but what it does is lighten the load in the long run. People getting healthy means they're less likely to come into contact with police, which frees up police resources to continue to do the other work in the community.