A Sacramento judge ordered a Santa Cruz County nonprofit to immediately stop its needle distribution program on Tuesday, the latest twist in an ongoing legal battle over local harm reduction services that carries statewide implications.
The Sacramento Superior Court ordered the California Department of Public Health to revoke its authorization of a mobile syringe distribution program run by the Harm Reduction Coalition of Santa Cruz County, which delivers clean syringes to users in the county.
The court sided with the Grant Park Neighborhood Association, a residents group whose boundaries range between Ocean and Market Streets. The group sued the state, arguing that the needle program had not properly consulted with local law enforcement agencies or the public and was drawing resources away from a separate syringe-exchange program operated by the county.
The final judgment by the Sacramento court follows a similar, unanimous decision by the Third Appellate District Court on Aug. 14. It has drawn interest from across California, with Butte County and the California Police Chiefs Association signing onto the lawsuit in support of the neighborhood association.
The ruling is expected to reverberate beyond Santa Cruz County. Communities such as Santa Ana and Chico have faced similar legal wrangling over private groups offering clean-needle programs, with cities and law enforcement agencies often objecting on public safety grounds.
Tuesday’s court ruling ordered the California Department of Health to follow its established guidelines in order to authorize new needle distribution programs anywhere in California. Those guidelines include a requirement to hold a 45-day public comment period and “engage in a period of interactive, back-and-forth consultation with local law enforcement agencies to balance public safety concerns with public health benefits.”
HRC’s syringe exchange program has faced additional challenges because the county runs its own needle-change program, which operates differently. Most notably, the county’s program operates at fixed locations at the Santa Cruz Health Center on Emeline Avenue for 12 hours a week and the Watsonville Health Center on Freedom Boulevard for six hours a week, while HRC’s is a home delivery program on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, with a phone number users can call or text.
In 2022, HRC lost its public funding during the county budget process after the board of supervisors deemed the program was unnecessary because it was redundant to the county’s own syringe exchange, which the board wanted to prioritize. The county’s program is not affected by Tuesday’s court decision.
In a news release, local attorney David Terrazas, who represents the Grant Park Neighborhood Association, said that the state’s authorization “undermined the public safety of Santa Cruz County residents and diminished the efficacy of the existing county program.”
Terrazas declined to comment publicly when reached by phone Tuesday. “Locally managed, well-run needle exchange programs are critically important throughout California,” he said in the release. “This decision upholds the rights of local residents and local law enforcement leaders to increase public safety associated with future projects like this and also holds administrative agencies accountable for their decisions and the impacts they have on local communities.”
HRC founder Denise Elerick told Lookout that the coalition has already reapplied for authorization under the proper guidelines, based on a tentative judgment in the case issued Nov. 7.
She said that while the coalition was “very disappointed” with the decision, the program will continue operating “by all legal means possible,” as it awaits possible reauthorization, which may be months down the road. While the coalition has stopped its mobile needle distribution service, it is continuing to connect program users to existing services that provide the same kind of care.
“We will do all we can between now and then to support the people we serve on our delivery line, refer people to the county program, offer transportation, and make sure people have all the supplies they need like Naloxone and fentanyl test strips,” she said.
Elerick added that program participants can reach out to the HRC to get connected with pharmacies and the county program.
Brad Angell, a founding member of the Grant Park Neighborhood Association, said that he places the blame on the state in this saga. He said in a news release that the lack of sufficient guidance and oversight from local government made the program feel like a “rogue group” that lacked organization.
“It’s not really [HRC’s] fault, they were issued the permit from the state,” he told Lookout in an interview. “The state is really the bad actor in this, because they completely disregarded the entire system here.”
Angell added that the neighborhood group is not against harm reduction, but does not think the program operated as it should given its hasty approval. Angell said that Grant Park off of Ocean Street was closed temporarily in 2018 because of safety issues, including needles. According to the news release, state reporting for 2020-2021 showed that the program distributed about 790,060 syringes, but only collected 432,705.
“If they acted in an appropriate way and didn’t go about their work in a vigilante manner, we might actually be supportive,” he said.
However, he said that should the state reauthorize the program, the Grant Park Neighborhood Association would likely pursue legal action once again: “We’re going to continue to be vigilant, and if we’re asked to continue to act, I’m sure we should get the same group together to follow up.”
Santa Cruz Police Chief Bernie Escalante and Santa Cruz County Health Services Agency did not respond to Lookout’s requests for comment. County spokesperson Jason Hoppin said that the county had no comment, as it is not a party to the lawsuit.