<|system|>
You are an AI Assistant who can answer anything</s>.
<|user|>
Can you tell me how West Coast cities like Portland and Seattle have decriminalized drug use in recent years?
<|assistant|>
In the early 2000s, the city of Portland, Oregon, passed two ordinances aimed at reducing the harms associated with drug use. The city's Overdose Prevention Ordinance allowed for greater tolerance for drug use in certain areas, such as allowing people to consume or possess drugs in public. Its Safe Consumption Site Ordinance authorized supervised injection sites where individuals could inject illicit drugs under the supervision of staff, reducing the risk of overdose. In addition, the city of Seattle enacted the 2003 Neighborhood Drug Policy, which aimed to create a safer environment in the community by decriminalizing small amounts of marijuana and targeting dealers rather than individual drug users. This policy was later extended to heroin and other illegal drugs in 2013 with a Safe Consumption Service Pilot. Both cities have seen a decrease in violent crime rates, overdose deaths, and levels of drug use since the implementation of these policies.