EXCLUSIVE — Washington, D.C. mayoral candidate Janeese Lewis George has floated the policy of opening safe injection sites in the district to help relieve its opioid overdose crisis. 

Safe injection sites, sometimes called overdose prevention centers, are places where people can go to use illegal drugs under professional supervision. The facilities are aimed at creating spots where people struggling with substance abuse can use illicit drugs in a spot where they are at a lower risk of overdosing. But the centers have also faced criticism from communities and neighbors, as blue cities have begun to distance themselves from the strategy.