250 International Journal of Criminology and Sociology, 2018, 7, 250-259 E-ISSN: 1929-4409/18 © 2018 Lifescience Global The Role of Law Enforcement in Community-Based Drug Treatment and its Impact on Crime Prevention Krisanaphong Poothakool * Rangsit University and Royal Police Cadet Academy, Thailand Abstract: In line with trends in other countries the Royal Thai Police acknowledges the need for more community- oriented approaches which are responsive to local contexts. However, the development of such approaches to policing needs also to engage with responses to illicit drug use locally, which would include a wider definition of harm reduction and accommodate the work of public health partners their initiatives, such as needle-exchange. The present study examines the role of law enforcement officers in community-based drug treatment in the Chiang Mai region of the Upper North, through use of in-depth, qualitative interviews with key stakeholders, which included senior police, judges, public health managers, NGO workers and local community leaders. Most interviewees expressed concern that not enough was being done to address drug use in local communities, and barriers to police adopting a harm reduction approach locally included government-directed arrest quotas and lack of experience in working co-operatively with public health partners. Effective police involvement required coordinated policy-change and officer training to develop understanding and ways of working to support community-based drug treatment. Keywords: Policing, community-based drug treatment, harm reduction, Thailand. INTRODUCTION In Thailand, law enforcement functions are carried out by the Royal Thai Police (RTP) whose head, the Commissioner General, would usually report directly to the Prime Minister’s Office, although at the time of writing the military were at the helm of state affairs due to political instability. As in other countries, the police role is to prevent and suppress crime and manage public order and safety. And as elsewhere, approaches to policing which recognize and are in accordance with local needs are vital to the prevention, detection, investigation and solution of crime-related matters. Effective policing is characterized by recognition of the need to work closely with local communities to not only prevent crimes and maintain public order, but also to secure legitimacy and promote transparency. Effective approaches to policing, therefore, require public consensus and support (Bayley, 2002). As elsewhere, policing in Thailand often includes interactions with people affected by drug use and dependence. The police have to respond to the harms to local communities resulting from drug use such as property crimes theft, public disputes, family violence and quarrels, thus, policing is inextricably linked to drug-related issues. Whilst the police role in responding to drug-related crimes and public order concerns is well recognized, their role in proactively supporting - *Address correspondence to this author at the Rangsit University and Royal Police Cadet Academy, Thailand; E-mail: k.poothakool@rsu.ac.th drug-related harm reduction often remains under- recognized, where enforcement of illicit drug laws forms part of populist government policies. Here, drug- related harm reduction refers to reducing the adverse health, social and economic harms associated with illicit drug use without necessarily reducing drug consumption (Harm Reduction International, 2015). Particularly, police can contribute to the effectiveness of a community-based harm reduction approaches by considering options other than arrest or direct referral to residential (detention) centers for drug users, and assist the drug users in receiving assistance in the community (LEAHN, 2014). The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) defines community- based drug treatment as: ‘A specific integrated model of treatment for people affected by drug use and dependence in the community which provides a continuum of care from outreach and low threshold services, through detoxification and stabilization to aftercare and integration, including maintenance pharmacotherapy’. [UNODC, 2014] Some global research suggests that hospitals and specialist alcohol and other drug clinical services are the most expensive way to provide services to People Who Use Drugs (PWUD) when compared to self-care and community care; and other research demonstrates that care and treatment delivered at the community