Pubdate: Thu, 02 Jan 2014
Source: Los Angeles Times (CA)
Copyright: 2014 Los Angeles Times
Contact:  http://www.latimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/248
Author: Jenny Deam

COLORADO POT EXPERIMENT BEGINS

Lines Form in the First State to Let Specialty Stores Sell Marijuana 
to Casual Consumers.

DENVER - At 7:59 a.m. on Wednesday, a harried Jay Griffin shouted to 
the crowd pressed against the roped off lines leading to his 
storefront counter: "One minute until we make history!"

Sixty seconds later, he and a handful of other pot shop retailers 
opened a new and closely watched chapter in the national debate over 
legalizing marijuana as Colorado became the first state in the 
country where small amounts of recreational pot can be legally sold 
in specialty stores.

Steve "Heyduke" Judish, a 58-year-old retired federal worker from 
Denver who prefers weed to booze, was the first customer of the day 
at Dank Colorado, a tiny shop tucked in a Denver industrial district. 
By opening time there were about 40 customers from as far away as 
Iowa and Minnesota who had waited for hours.

After a quiet start in the morning, lines swelled in the late 
afternoon under the close watch of security guards. City officials 
commented that even though lines at some stores snaked into the 
streets in chilly weather, the crowds were remarkably patient and, 
yes, mellow - a mix of young and old, mostly men.

Judish peeled off $30 and walked away with one-eighth of an ounce of 
Larry OG, a potent strain of marijuana that connoisseurs like for its 
euphoric rush. He had put his name on a list to be first in line 14 
hours earlier.

But really, he has been waiting 40 years for this legal buy.

"It's cool to be part of history," he said with a grin.

Not far behind him was Doug Little, 62, who had arrived in the 
predawn darkness. He too felt the baby boomer tug of history. "I 
smoked my first joint in 1969 in a dorm room at Michigan State. I 
never thought I would see this in my lifetime."

"Hi, buddy. You got your ID?" Griffin asked as Little approached the counter.

"I'd like a quarter Trainwreck and a quarter Sour Diesel," Little 
said, rattling off the strains like a sommelier at a wine tasting as 
he ordered by the partial ounce.

"The names are crazy," he admitted. His tab came to $169.57.

In November 2012, Colorado voters approved Amendment 64, making it 
legal for residents over 21 to buy small amounts of recreational 
marijuana. Washington state passed a similar measure, but officials 
there say they won't be ready to open stores until later this year.

Despite the excitement in retail shops, there were critics like Kevin 
Sabet, cofounder of Smart Approaches to Marijuana, or SAM, who called 
Wednesday's landmark event "the beginning of the era of Big Marijuana 
not unlike what we saw in this country with Big Tobacco."

"This is an industry that makes money off addiction," he said, adding 
that he was concerned that children would be targeted and swayed into 
thinking marijuana is harmless.

Sabet vowed to continue the fight against legalization in other 
states, saying, "We don't think legalization is inevitable."

The Colorado venture is being closely watched in other states 
considering loosening their pot laws, including California, Oregon and Arizona.

Colorado residents can buy up to an ounce of marijuana at a time. 
Residents with an out-of-state ID can buy up to one-quarter ounce. 
Buyers are not restricted from shopping from store to store - 
although under state law they are only allowed to possess up to 1 
ounce at a time.

Possession of more than 1 but less than 8 ounces of marijuana is a 
misdemeanor and carries fines up to $5,000, plus up to 18 months in 
jail. It is a felony to possess more than 8 ounces, and fines can be 
as high as $100,000, with up to three years in prison.

The list of don'ts is lengthy under state and local laws:

Smoking inside a public building is a violation of the Colorado Clean 
Indoor Air Act, which also prohibits marijuana clubs or salons. 
Smoking in public outdoor spaces - including parks, ski resorts and 
forests - is also off-limits. Smoking at a private residence is 
allowed, but for renters it can be up to the landlord.

Driving while impaired is prohibited, as is transporting marijuana 
over state lines by car or plane.

Griffin Day, 23, and Ricky Webb, 24, drove to Colorado from Cedar 
Rapids, Iowa. Day dropped $70, Webb $168, each buying a smorgasbord 
of marijuana and marijuana-laced products. "This is the Amsterdam 
trip we couldn't take," Webb said.

A few miles away, at a shop called 3D Cannabis Center, a small army 
of television news trucks jammed the parking lot. A food tent selling 
doughnuts, tacos and funnel cakes added to the party atmosphere.

Jacob Elliott, 31, who had flown to Denver from Virginia on Tuesday, 
arrived at 4:30 a.m. Tyler Williams and Brandon Harris, both 24, 
drove 20 hours straight from Ohio and had been waiting since 2:30 a.m.

Toni Fox, the owner of 3D, was allowed to transfer some product from 
her medical marijuana dispensary and has braced for huge crowds. 
Instead, she likened it to Black Friday, without manic, pushy 
shoppers. "Green Wednesday," she called it.

Late last month, 136 retail marijuana licenses in Colorado were 
issued. But not all outlets were ready for business Wednesday. Only 
about eight opened in Denver. The Denver Post reported 37 stores were 
open statewide.

Proponents have long called it a financial windfall to the state, 
since retail pot comes with a hefty 25% state tax on top of the usual 
sales tax of 2.9%. By some estimates it is expected to generate $67 
million a year, with $27.5 million designated for schools, officials said.

Though marijuana is still illegal on the federal level, the Justice 
Department issued a memo in August saying that federal authorities 
should not pursue prosecution for recreational pot in Colorado and Washington.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom