
Toronto's drug crisis: How one murder exposed the truth
From Hub Podcasts by Hub Canada Media
April 27, 2026 · 42 min
About this episode
Derek Finkle discusses the implications of a murder at a supervised injection site in Toronto's Leslieville and the broader failures of drug policy and harm reduction.
Investigative journalist Derek Finkle discusses how Toronto's Leslieville neighbourhood became ground zero for Canada's drug policy debate after a fatal shooting at a supervised injection site. He details years of community concerns about open drug use, dealers, and mismanagement that preceded the tragedy, the inadequate institutional response afterward, and revelations from the criminal trial about staff complicity. Finkle examines the broader failure of harm reduction and argues for a spectrum of involuntary care options for those unable to help themselves. This episode is a part of The Hub's new Fault Lines initiative, which examines the pressures pulling Canadian society apart and the principles that can hold it together. Click here to learn more: https://thehub.ca/fault-lines/ The Hub is Canada’s fastest growing independent digital news outlet. Subscribe to The Hub’s podcast feed to get all our best content: https://tinyurl.com/3a7zpd7e (Apple) https://tinyurl.com/y8akmfn7 (Spotify) Follow The Hub on X: https://x.com/thehubcanada?lang=en CREDITS: Amal Attar-Guzman - Producer and Video Editor Alex Gluch - Sound Editor Stephen Staley - Host Hosted on Acast. See…
People in this episode
Host: Stephen Staley
Guest: Derek Finkle
Topics covered
- drug policy
- harm reduction
- community concerns
- institutional response
- criminal trial
- involuntary care
- public health
Keywords
- Toronto
- drug crisis
- supervised injection site
- harm reduction
- community concerns
- involuntary care
- criminal trial
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: The Hub, Canada, Acast
Places: Toronto, Leslieville
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