‘No More Needles in Our Parks,’ Say Santa Monica Residents Fed Up With LA County Program

‘Our children do not need to be exposed to open drug use, period,’ said a councilwoman who joined the needle-exchange protest.

A family uses a playground near a homeless man in Santa Monica, Calif., on June 2, 2023. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

Santa Monica leaders and residents have joined forces to call on Los Angeles County health officials to immediately stop a needle exchange program that they say is responsible for dirty needles in their parks and an increase in crime and homelessness.

City leaders have twice asked for the program to be moved away from the city’s parks. Their efforts have included passing a resolution on April 9 asking the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors to request that the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health, which administers the program, move the program indoors.