Drug injection facility to stay open

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (AP) - Canada's Supreme Court is allowing the only legal drug injection facility in North America to stay open.

It's located in a seedy, drug-infested area of Vancouver, British Columbia. Addicts who go there are given clean needles and sterilized water in which to mix their drug. They bring their own drugs, and they inject at 12 stainless steel alcoves with mirrors on the walls, so nurses on a raised platform can see them.

Its founders call it a safe and humane space for drug abusers. Canada's Conservative government said it aids drug abuse.

The World Health Organization supports the facilities, which also exist in Australia and Western Europe. It says they help to slow the spread of AIDS through infected needles.

Today's court decision could lead to the eventual opening of other facilities in different Canadian cities -- but the ruling applied only to the site in Vancouver.

Canada's health minister says the government is disappointed in the decision, and believes the focus should be on prevention and treatment.