On November 10th, the Stanislaus County District Attorney was not interested in anything less than a misdemeanor conviction against two volunteers arrested for offering syringe exchange, and harm reduction services in the Airport District of Modesto. In an act of punishment and criminalization of public health service, the District Attorney offered the defendants a plea bargain that included jail time, three years probation, and a "Stay Away Order," requiring them to stay out of the park where they were arrested. The stay away order was added the day after defendants began conducting syringe clean-ups and public education about safe disposal in the Mono Park area.

The Mono Park 2 assert that, "the D.A. keeps sending the wrong message LOUD & CLEAR: the lives of users, residents and workers in this community are not worth protecting from accidental needle sticks, disease or injury. In the mean time, the user's worst nightmares of disease or injury, a parent's worst thought of their child getting stuck, and the risk to park and public safety workers looms over Mono Park." In addition to the public health concerns, the "stay away" order on defendants' records would appear as if they were child molesters, abusers or drug dealers -- all of which would have a variety of negative consequences in their future.

Read more | Syringe Exchange Defendants Prepare for Battle in Modesto | Busted for Handing Out Clean Needles | Interview with "Modesto Mono Park 2" | Off The Streets Project