Pubdate: Fri, 21 Jun 2013
Source: West Seattle Herald (WA)
Copyright: 2013 Robinson Newspapers
Contact:  http://www.westseattleherald.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/4380
Author: Ty Swenson

COALITION EXPLORES LINK BETWEEN TEEN POT USE AND RISE IN DISPENSARIES

As medical marijuana dispensaries continue to pop up in West Seattle
and White Center, the Coalition for Drug Free Youth (focused on
reducing teen drug, alcohol and tobacco use in Highline Schools) spent
a good portion of their June meeting discussing the phenomenon and
what it means for their challenge in reducing teen pot use.

The conversation, held at Navos in Burien, centered on concern from a
Seattle Public Schools survey taken in October of 2012 that found
around 40 percent of students who use marijuana said they got it from
a medical marijuana dispensary. The survey did not detail whether the
students got it through someone else who had a medical card, or
whether they possessed a card themselves (there are no laws on the
books stating a minimum age to get a medical marijuana authorization,
so a teenager can get one if they find a doctor willing to sign off).

White Center Storefront Deputy BJ Myers said staff members at Cascade
Middle School in White Center have seen an uptick in student marijuana
use and possession over the past year, but noted there is no way to
correlate that jump with the rise in dispensaries. He said there
hasn't been a spike in any particular type of crime since about six
new dispensaries came into the area over the past year. In a meeting
with the coalition earlier this year, Cascade Principal Ana Garcia
said she believed the spike at her school was likely most strongly
linked to the passage of I-502, legalizing recreational marijuana for
adults 21 and over. She feared the message from that law to her
students was that it's OK to smoke marijuana now.

Chris Cody, owner of the Herban Legends medical marijuana dispensary
in White Center, attended the meeting to provide an insider's take to
the group, made up primarily of drug and mental health counselors.

Cody said one of the problems with the medical marijuana industry is
the lack of clear guidelines - both for operators and law enforcement.
While some dispensaries have stepped up in attempts to legitimize
their business model, he said others have not because there simply is
no enforcement forcing them to do so. He said some dispensaries
(including Herban Legends) collect sales tax, only provide cannabis to
minor patients who are accompanied by an adult, and educate patients
that their cannabis is only for personal use. Others, he said, do none
of those things.

To that end, Cody said he would welcome further regulation of the
medical side of things. Currently, as state lawmakers grapple with the
budget in Olympia, there is an amendment included in those budget
proposals that would require the state's Liquor Control Board (WSLCB)
to regulate medicinal marijuana in addition to recreational, as they
have not done in the past. If it passes, it would likely mean a slew
of regulations including required taxation and a limit on the number
of dispensaries that could operate in a given area. Cody said he
understands that change could theoretically mean he wouldn't be able
to get a license through WSLCB, but added it's worth the risk to see
uniformity across the industry.

Deputy Myers said, from the law enforcement perspective, certain
dispensary owners are far more open and easy to work with for his
department than others, but for those who want to keep the blinds down
"we don't have a whole lot of reason to force them to at this point,
because there aren't regulations on their business that require us to
check in on them."

While regulation of the medical marijuana industry could provide more
tax dollars and less variation, there are no guarantees it will have
an effect on youth access to marijuana.

Roslyn Kagy, a counselor with New Futures and Navos, added to the
conversation, stating, "If young people want to get drugs, they can
get drugs and I think the majority of them aren't doing it going
through all these steps and legal, medical avenues."

Kagy said none of the kids she works with throughout south King County
go through a dispensary for their pot.

"We also need to widen out and focus on education and prevention =C2=85.
(For kids to get an authorization,) that's just legal and messy and
there is paperwork for prescriptions and so, kids are on the street
and kids can get drugs anywhere. If we regulate all of this, they can
still get drugs," she said.

Rudy Garza, the coalition coordinator and Navos spokesman, said,
""Marijuana is here to stay, apparently, unless the (feds) decide to
crack down on it. So it's not a matter of how do we get rid of it,
it's a matter of how do we manage it so it doesn't impact our youth."

The group agreed their main mission is to teach kids, parents and
siblings that using cannabis as a teen, while the brain is still
developing, could have negative and long-lasting effects. With
Washingtonian's making recreational use for those 21 and over legal,
the conversation becomes less cut and dry.

The Coalition for Drug-Free Youth is made up of White Center and
Burien community members, counselors, business owners, law enforcement
and more, operating primarily through a King County grant. They are
taking student and community surveys now to better understand the face
and factors involved in underage drug and alcohol abuse, and will take
that information to develop a plan for outreach and education in the
coming months.
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MAP posted-by: Matt