Suffolk District Attorney Rachael Rollins is calling on state lawmakers to approve safe injection sites in Massachusetts after a federal judge in Philadelphia ruled that the facilities do not violate federal drug law.

In a letter to lawmakers dated Oct. 8, Rollins expressed “strong support” for legislation that would establish safe injection sites and enable healthcare professionals to assist people with substance use disorder to consume drugs safely.

“Investing resources in evidence-based solutions, such as safe consumption sites, isn’t just the right thing to do; it’s the smart thing to do,” Rollins wrote to the Committee on Mental Health, Substance Use and Recovery. “Clearing the streets will not clear up the underlying problems, and in the end will cost us much more money and we will lose more lives.”

Rollins’ letter comes as U.S. Attorney Andrew Lelling recently reaffirmed his opposition to the drug consumption sites, saying that efforts to open the facilities in Massachusetts “will be met with federal enforcement.”

On Oct. 2, Judge Gerald McHugh ruled that a nonprofit’s plans to open a safe injection site in Philadelphia do not run afoul of the so-called "crack house statute,” which makes it a felony to “knowingly open, lease, rent, use or maintain any place for the purpose of manufacturing, distributing or using any controlled substance.” Two days later, Lelling said the ruling represents “only the first step in a long process of judicial review for this important issue.”

Rollins said the ruling marks a “historic turning point in the fight for safe consumption sites,” noting it’s the first legal decision affirming the facilities’ legality under federal law.

Referencing Boston’s so-called ‘Methadone Mile,’ and area of Massachusetts Avenue and Melnea Cass Boulevard rife with substance use issues, Rollins said addiction presents major public safety concerns in the Greater Boston region.

“‘Mass & Cass’ is arguably the epicenter of the opioid crisis in our Commonwealth and is located in the heart of Suffolk County,” she wrote. “This crisis touches every segment of my jurisdiction. It does not discriminate based on race, wealth, age or orientation. Everyone is impacted.”