California Mayor Says Homeless People 'Are Killing Our Citizens,' Proposes Giving Them 'Free Fentanyl'

Lancaster Mayor Rex Parris is a controversial figure in California's political scene. Known for being outspoken, Parris is now under fire after the resurfacing of a February city council meeting video in which he suggests giving homeless people "free fentanyl" to end the city's homelessness crisis.

"I want to give them all the fentanyl they want. That is what I want to do," Parris said, as he was being questioned about his proposal of "enclosing all homeless people in one territory."

In a recent Fox 11 interview, the mayor doubled down on his remarks, saying he does not regret a single word.

"I don't regret saying it, I'm happy that we're focusing the attention on an aspect of this problem that nobody seems to wanna look at. These people are killing our citizens, not a lot of them, but some of them, they have no respect for law and order," he added.

When asked about the criticism fired at him for his "cruel" solution to homelessness, the mayor said he counts on his constituents' support, hence being elected six times.

Meanwhile, Parris's political opponents are trying to recall him, suggesting the six-time mayor "has prioritized personal gain over the well-being of residents."

Organizers of recall-rex.com say the decision by Parris to extend mayoral terms from 2 years to 4 as an example of "manipulating the democratic process."

According to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, more than 107,000 people lost their lives to a drug overdose in 2023, with nearly 70 percent of those deaths attributed to opioids such as fentanyl.

Additionally, this year, the DEA found that five out of every 10 fentanyl pills contained a lethal dose. This was an improvement compared to 2023, when seven out of 10 pills had lethal amounts.