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Street Policing, Injecting Drug Use and Harm Reduction in a Russian City: A Qualitative Study of Police Perspectives

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Abstract

We undertook a qualitative exploration of police perspectives on injecting drug use and needle and syringe access among injecting drug users (IDUs) in a Russian city which has witnessed explosive spread of HIV associated with drug injecting. Twenty-seven in-depth qualitative interviews were conducted in May 2002 with police officers of varying rank who reported having regular contact with IDUs. All interviews were tape-recorded, transcribed, translated and coded thematically. Accounts upheld an approach to policing which emphasised high street-based visibility and close surveillance of IDUs. IDUs were depicted as ‘potential criminals’ warranting a ‘pre-emptive’ approach to the prevention of drug-related crime. Street policing was described as a means of maintaining close surveillance leading to the official registration of persons suspected or proven to be users of illicit drugs. Such registration enabled further ongoing surveillance, including through stop and search procedures. While aware of drug users' reluctance to carry injecting equipment linked to their fears of detention or arrest, accounts suggested that the confiscation of previously used injecting equipment can constitute evidence in relation to drugs possession charges and that discovery of clean injecting equipment may be sufficient to raise suspicion and/or further investigation, including through stop and search or questioning. Our findings suggest an uneasy relationship between street policing and needle and syringe access, whereby policing strategies can undermine an HIV prevention ethos promoting needle and syringe accessibility among IDUs. We conclude that facilitating partnerships between policing agencies and HIV prevention initiatives are a critical feature of creating environments conducive for risk reduction.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful for the support of the UK Department for International Development for project funding support, and to the UK Department of Health for core funding to the Centre for Research on Drugs and Health Behaviour. We also thank Alexandra Kornienko for her assistance during fieldwork. We would also like to thank the Togliatti City Department of Internal Affairs, the Togliatti City Department of Health, the Togliatti Harm Reduction Project Coordination Group, and the following individuals: Elvira Zhukova; Veronica Petrova; Yuri Pevzner; Alexander Shakhov; and Adrian Renton.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Research on Drugs and Health Behaviour, Department of Public Health and Policy, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, 1 Keppel Street, London, UK

    Tim Rhodes & Lucy Platt

  2. Russian Harm Reduction Network, Russian Federation, Moscow, Russia

    Anya Sarang

  3. Department of Internal Affairs, Russian Federation, Togliatti, Russia

    Alexander Vlasov

  4. Togliatti City Narcological Services, Russian Federation, Togliatti, Russia

    Larissa Mikhailova

  5. United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, Regional Office for Russia and Belarus, Russian Federation, Moscow, Russia

    Geoff Monaghan

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  1. Tim Rhodes
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  2. Lucy Platt
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  4. Alexander Vlasov
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  5. Larissa Mikhailova
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  6. Geoff Monaghan
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Correspondence to Tim Rhodes.

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Rhodes, T., Platt, L., Sarang, A. et al. Street Policing, Injecting Drug Use and Harm Reduction in a Russian City: A Qualitative Study of Police Perspectives. JURH 83, 911–925 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11524-006-9085-y

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