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SANTA ANA POLICE OFFICERS ASSOCIATION 1607 NORTH SYCAMORE SANTA ANA, CALIFORNIA 92701-3513 [714] 836-1211 FAX [714] 836-6108 15"�h * * VIA EMAIL April 16, 2024 DEAR HONORABLE MAYOR AMEZCUA AND CITY COUNCIL, As my role as President of the Santa Ana Police Officers Association, we express our opposition to the proposed Needle Exchange Program and support for Item 27 on tonight's agenda. The proposed Needle Exchange Program by the Harm Reduction Institute will only make the substance abuse problem worse, enabling drug use rather than deter it. This will leave our community littered with needles that will put our residents, who we serve and protect every day, in harm's way. This is the wrong solution to the current drug abuse crisis. The last time there was a needle exchange program in our city, we had an epidemic of dirty needles in our community. Many of our officers had to put themselves in harm's way to clean up the mess. By the applicants own admission, 120,000 needles would once again be left on our streets. In our view, this is unacceptable. We find it interesting that the people who propose these needle exchange programs are NOT from Santa Ana and are often from much more affluent cities. Why not do the program in other cities? Why does Santa Ana always have to be the dumping ground? In our view, it is an insult that out of towners from more affluent communities choose to run their failed social experiments in Latino communities, putting working class and immigrant families at risk and placing more obstacles and challenges to our police officers whose job is to protect and serve these families. At a time that we are understaffed this will cause more calls for service and prolong our response time to emergency calls. These programs will increase the use of drugs at our parks and neighborhood. Drug abuse is being normalized for our youngest residents, who should not have to be exposed to this kind of behavior. Once again, why are children in more affluent cities deserving of being shielded from such behavior, but the children of Santa Ana are not. Santa Ana deserves much better. Please join the Santa Ana Police Officers Association, Santa Ana Police Management Association, our city employees with SEIU Local 721 and thousands of Santa Ana residents in opposing this terrible Needle Exchange Program. Sincerely, JOHN KACHIRISKY PRESIDENT SANTA ANA POLICE OFFICERS ASSOCIATION \\fsapp01\rosie\Documents\13 - PAC\SAPOA 2024 Needle Exchange Program -Letter to SA City Council.doc