Pubdate: Tue, 01 Jan 2013
Source: Summit Daily News (CO)
Copyright: 2013 Summit Daily News
Contact: http://apps.summitdaily.com/forms/letter/index.php
Website: http://www.summitdaily.com/home.php
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/587
Note: by The Associated Press

WYO. EXPECTS MORE POT CRIMES DUE TO COLO. LAW

CASPER, Wyo. - Wyoming is bracing for increased marijuana crimes
because of Colorado's new constitutional amendment allowing anyone
over 21 to use the drug.

The Casper Star-Tribune reported Tuesday that police officers predict
increased cannabis flow through Wyoming because of the Colorado pot
law. The newspaper points out that no point in Wyoming is more than
180 miles from Colorado or Montana, which allows marijuana for people
with certain medical conditions.

"With Wyoming being a neighboring state, I would suspect you'll see an
increase in marijuana use," said Tom Gorman, director of the Rocky
Mountain High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area program.

Under current Wyoming state law, anyone arrested for possessing up to
an ounce of the drug could face up to a year in jail or up to a $1,000
fine.

Casper Defense Attorney Jakob Norman doesn't necessarily foresee more
arrests in the area, but he predicts that more people traveling to
Colorado to smoke will result in more indirect consequences.

"With so many Wyomingites traveling to Colorado, I think we'll see an
increase in people getting in trouble for testing hot," he said. This
could affect those who are on probation or who have employers who
regularly impose drug tests.

Wyoming lawmakers said they're not expecting any change to state
marijuana laws to be proposed in the upcoming legislative session. And
Rep. Tim Stubson, R-Casper, said no bills are slated to be brought
forth in the upcoming session either.

"There have been some conversations, generally about how they deal
with marijuana coming over the state line," he said.

Casper City Councilman Keith Goodenough has been unsuccessfully
pushing for marijuana reform for years. He said he doubts state laws
will change much in the upcoming years.

"The law-and-order angle trumps a lot of it. Conservatives are
generally very supportive of passing laws enforcing crime," he said.
"Wyoming has always been a conservative place, and existing
institutions don't change very quickly." 
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