Pubdate: Wed, 30 Jul 2014 Source: Albuquerque Journal (NM) Copyright: 2014 Albuquerque Journal Contact: http://www.abqjournal.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/10 Page: A6 KNOW THE CONSEQUENCES OF LETTING FOLKS GET A LITTLE HIGH Consider it one of the unintended consequences of legalizing recreational marijuana: more homeless folks who show up because getting high isn't a crime. That's what has happened across the New Mexico state line in Colorado, where shelters like Urban Peak in Denver and Colorado Springs are reporting a surge in clients, and "of the new kids we're seeing, the majority are saying they're here because of the weed." A Facebook post Sunday included "at the 16th Street Mall in Denver .. approached by a couple with a sign that reads 'out of grass, spare a bud, for my lazy ass.' " Get panhandled by stoners - how's that for a tourism ad for Old Town or Santa Fe Plaza? And considering Albuquerque's troubled present with the homeless, including a fatal - and viral - police shooting and three brutal killings, is this road north one New Mexico wants to travel? Petition organizers, who have turned in more than 16,000 signatures in Albuquerque and still have time to gather more in Santa Fe to get voters to decriminalize small amounts of pot, would likely say yes. But city councilors, who could decriminalize marijuana on their own, or voters, if the proposal is put on the November ballot, should seriously consider this and other unintended consequences, including: New Mexico doesn't have a drugged driving law. There seems little consideration as to how effectively legalizing pot fits into a scheme in which many workplaces require drug-free employees. The retail price in Colorado for recreational pot is double that sold for medical use, likely explaining why many folks have cash for reefer but not rent. Colorado kids as young as 10 have been busted for selling their families' recreational weed. It's far from certain a municipality can enact lower penalties that those in state law for offenses such as drug possession - setting up another expensive legal fight. Earlier this month a Journal flash poll of statewide registered voters found 47 percent of those surveyed believed marijuana should not be legalized; 40 percent believed it should. Albuquerque and Santa Fe councilors and voters might soon get to decide if it's OK in their communities to get a little high. And they first need to decide if their communities are OK with the other consequences that brings. - --- MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom