Pubdate: Fri, 16 Aug 2013
Source: San Jose Mercury News (CA)
Copyright: 2013 Associated Press
Contact:  http://www.mercurynews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/390
Author: Gene Johnson, Associated Press

SEATTLE COPS TO DISPENSE CHIPS, TIPS AT HEMPFEST

SEATTLE (AP) - A few things will be different at this year's 
Hempfest, the 22year-old summer "protestival" on Seattle's waterfront 
where tens of thousands of revelers gather to use dope openly, listen 
to music and gaze at the Olympic Mountains in the distance.

The haze of pot smoke might smell a little more like victory, after 
Washington and Colorado became the first states to legalize marijuana 
use by adults over 21. Having won at the state level, speakers will 
concentrate on the reform of federal marijuana laws.

Oh, and the Seattle police-who have long turned a lenient eye on 
Hempfest tokers - don't plan to be writing tickets or making arrests. 
They'll be busy handing out Doritos.

"I think it's going to be a lot of fun," said Sgt. Sean Whitcomb, 
department spokesman and junk-food-dispenser-in-chief. "It's meant to 
be ironic. The idea of police passing out Doritos at a festival that 
celebrates pot, we're sure, is going to generate some buzz."

The idea isn't just to satisfy some munchies.

The department has affixed labels to 1,000 bags of Doritos urging 
people to check out a question-and-answer post on its website, titled 
"Marijwhatnow? A Guide to Legal Marijuana Use In Seattle."

It explains some of the nuances of Washington's law: that adults can 
possess up to an ounce but can't sell it or give it away, that 
driving under the influence of pot is illegal, and that - festivals 
aside - public use is illegal.

Organizers are expecting as many as 85,000 people each day of the 
three-day event, which begins Friday.

The vote legalized possession of marijuana and set up a system of 
state-licensed marijuana growers, processors and stores to sell taxed 
and regulated weed.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom