HMN 2026: How Research debunks crime spike myth at safe injection sites in Toronto

Overdose prevention sites and supervised consumption sites in Toronto are not associated with long-term increases in local crime, McGill University researchers have found.

Over 10 years, crime reports remained stable or declined in neighborhoods where sites opened, the researchers said. Their findings land amid debates across Canada about how harm reduction services intersect with public health and safety. The work is published in the journal JAMA Network Open.

“Opposition from the public and policymakers has often centered on neighborhood safety and decline. We wanted to find out whether the data supported those claims,” said Dimitra Panagiotoglou, an associate professor in McGill’s Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics and Occupational Health, and Canada Research Chair in the Economics of Harm Reduction, Tier 2.

Comparing over a decade of crime data

The study examined nine overdose prevention and supervised consumption sites that opened beginning in 2017. They all closed in 2025 following policy changes and community pressure.

Using Toronto Police Service data from 2014 to 2025, the researchers tracked five major crimes—assault, auto theft, break and enter, robbery and theft over $5,000—alongside bicycle theft and theft from motor vehicles, within 400 meters of each site.

“These are crimes that influence how safe people feel in their neighborhoods and the information people often look to when deciding where to move,” said Panagiotoglou.

Once the sites opened, there was a jump in break and enters in some areas. Over time, those reports declined, as did reports of robberies, thefts over $5,000, bicycle thefts and thefts from motor vehicles across all sites. Assaults and auto thefts showed no consistent association.

Why did crime decline?

The finding that crime did not increase mirrors results from other cities, though the decline was less expected and is not fully understood.

Panagiotoglou said police may have stepped up patrols early on, which could help explain why some crime rose briefly before declining. A change in strategy could also play a role. In 2019, Toronto police launched a mental health and addictions initiative aimed at improving interactions with people in crisis.

It’s unlikely that the results are explained by fewer people reporting crimes, she noted. In 2018, police adopted a more victim-centered definition of “founded” crime, which led to more reports, not fewer.

Call for ‘realism and compassion’

Nearly 10 years after Canada recognized the opioid crisis as a public health emergency, the scholars say polarized views on harm reduction are holding back progress.

“We need both realism and compassion,” said Panagiotoglou. “People’s discomfort is understandable, but the crisis reflects deeper systemic issues, such as housing, employment and the toxic drug supply. We need nuanced conversations about what’s working and what isn’t so we can find solutions.”

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