A recent analysis published in The Chronicle and authored by Rep. Peter Abbarno examined the public safety implications of policies that normalize dangerous drug use in Washington state. “Fentanyl and other deadly drugs continue to ravage neighbourhoods across Seattle and Washington state,” he wrote. “A recent decision by newly elected Seattle Mayor Katie Wilson to allow open use of dangerous drugs highlights the extent to which Democrats are increasingly out of step with public safety and common sense.”
According to Abbarno, such policies are often described as compassionate or evidence-based, but once decriminalization is implemented through court decisions or executive action, it can lead to major negative consequences. In the article, he also raises concern over public health and harm-reduction efforts leading to normalization of dangerous drug use, creating obstacles for recovery.
“If Washington is serious about ending cycles of addiction and building healthier communities, policy cannot dismiss the rule of law, empower dealers, or treat dangerous drug use as a harmless personal choice. Accountability and treatment must march hand in hand — or we will continue to pay the price in human suffering and public decay,” concluded Abbarno.
Furthermore, he argues that arrest and booking authority for repeat public drug use is one of the few tools police have to pressure individuals into treatment or sobriety. Without the threat of legal consequences, he argues, open drug use becomes normalized, leading to worsening public health outcomes and reduced public safety. “Why should a potential drug policy decision made in Seattle concern a legislator in Southwest Washington? Because too often, policy experiments that begin in Seattle don’t stay there,” he said. “Through Democratic majorities in Olympia, those ideas are frequently scaled statewide — regardless of whether they work or reflect the realities and values of the rest of Washington.”
Abbarno also suggested that Washington is still suffering the consequences from the 2021 Blake decision that weakened drug possession laws, and that although legislators tried to create a balance in 2023 by reclassifying possession as a misdemeanor, the ongoing fentanyl crisis demands stronger accountability. In addition, he cited the enforcement measures introduced in 2025 by Republicans, including harsher penalties for fentanyl distribution, child safety requirements tied to sobriety, and expanded drug task forces, and suggested that these efforts have stalled due to Democratic control of the Legislature.
