A new report from the John Howard Society of Ontario highlights the growing severity of the toxic drug crisis and the effects on those involved in northern Ontario’s criminal justice system.
The report, released Tuesday, explores the link between incarceration and drug-related deaths in the region. It says people from northern communities and First Nations face increasing risk of harm after leaving correctional facilities.
“The risk of drug-related death is over 50 times higher in the first two weeks post-release compared to the general population,” it says.
That statistic comes as no surprise to Kyle Arnold, co-ordinator of the warming and cooling centre at People Advocating for Change Through Empowerment (PACE) in Thunder Bay.
“I myself have been there where you’re in a [correctional] facility and that tolerance is at an all-time low because generally speaking, you’re not using in a facility, and when they release you, there is your addiction waiting for you all over again,” he said.
Arnold, who is seven years into his recovery from addiction, said Thunder Bay’s drug supply has become increasingly unpredictable, putting recently released inmates at greater risk.
“Northern Toll: The Impact of the Drug Toxicity Crisis in Northern Ontario Corrections” involved consultations with social service providers in Thunder Bay, Sudbury and Sault Ste. Marie, as well as with people with lived experience of substance use.
“Northern Ontario is hit quite hard by the drug toxicity crisis with deaths more than double the provincial average,” said Safiyah Husein, director of policy with the John Howard Society of Ontario and one of the report’s lead authors.
“There are some key challenges in the north: a lack of access to appropriate care, treatment support for this population and an increasingly complex and lethal drug supply.”
The non-profit organization is calling for better release plans for people leaving correctional facilities, including housing, health care and addictions support. It is also advocating for policies tailored to northern Ontario’s distinct needs.
“There’s an urgent need in the province for investment in a wide range of treatment, harm reduction, recovery and housing options,” said Husein.
“Especially in the north, investing in Indigenous-led organizations, culturally-appropriate programs that address community needs and reduce system barriers.”
CBC News received an emailed statement Tuesday from a spokesperson for Ontario’s solicitor general, saying the ministry “works with community partners, municipalities, and other organizations to support the transition of individuals released from custody.”
“This includes arranging travel to their home communities and establishing connections with third-party supports, as well as treatment services,” wrote spokesperson Saddam Khussain.
Khussain pointed to the province’s $560-million Homelessness and Addiction Recovery Treatment (HART) Hub program and its $124-million Addictions Recovery Fund, which includes building 500 new addiction recovery beds — “over half of which are located in the north.”
The province is also spending “over $230 million for mental health and addictions services in northern Ontario for ensuring that people are accessing the care that they need,” Khussain said.
Northern Ontario communities comprise four of the five cities with the highest drug-related death rates in the province, according to the latest report from the Office of the Chief Coroner.
Thunder Bay continues to see the highest rate, at more than five times the provincial average.
At the end of March 2025, the region’s only supervised consumption site, Path 525 in Thunder Bay, shut down because of new provincial rules about how close these facilities can be to schools and child-care settings.
“That [was] their first stop when they left jail would be to pick up, go there, get their drugs tested, and then do their drugs where they had all of those supports of nurses and social work to make sure they were OK,” Arnold said.
“Once we took that service away, now all of a sudden we’re seeing an influx of overdoses.”
Kandace Belanger, who manages the street outreach and harm reduction teams at the Thunder Bay District Health Unit, said the John Howard Society’s report provides an in-depth analysis of the situation.
In her view, these challenges are more prominent in the north due to geographic isolation and “an evolving and very toxic drug supply.”
She said she would like to see better co-ordination of health and social services when people are released from custody.
“I think a lot of times what’s helpful is warm handoffs into these services,” Belanger said.
“It’s challenging though, because the needs are complex. There’s some systemic challenges around even availability of beds and services for treatment, detox.”
For its part, the health unit provides people who use drugs with new drug equipment, naloxone kits and referrals to community resources, she said.
In First Nations, “the toxic drug crisis is impossible to disentangle from the ongoing impacts of colonization, the residential school system, inadequate housing, poor access to clean water, isolation from services, and limited resources,” Tuesday’s report.
“As a result, between 2019 and 2021, opioid-related toxicity deaths in First Nations communities in Ontario nearly tripled.”
Paul Capon is a political adviser with Matawa First Nations who was consulted for the report.
“It is probably, I would say, the most challenging issue that we’re facing in First Nations right now,” he said of the drug crisis.
Isolation, combined with a lack of services and jurisdictional disputes, play a big role in the challenges communities are facing, Capon said.
As well, First Nations that have received government settlements are vulnerable to drug dealers taking advantage of those receiving payments, he added.
“Hopefully this report will really call to action, collectively, how we can deal with this,” said Capon.
Arnold said it is important to remember how stigma prevents people from seeking help.
“Drug use is 10 per cent of the problem. The actual problem is the person has trauma and pain,” he said.
“Taking those 10-15 minutes to have a conversation with them, not stigmatizing the fact that they are going to go and use, and looking at an action plan.”
