One out of every five Colorado teens admits having used marijuana in the past month, but that rate has not increased since pot was legalized in the state and is in line with the national average, according to a new report from the state Health Department.

Among the other findings of the 2015 Healthy Kids Colorado Survey, released Monday:

The large majority of Colorado middle and high school students - 62 percent - say they have never used marijuana.

Alcohol is the drug of choice among Colorado teens, with 30 percent of kids surveyed saying they drank within the previous month.

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Commissioner Is Open to a Ballot Question but Suspects a Ban Is Unlikely.

Legal recreational marijuana and a low cost of living have drawn growers, sellers and users to the Pueblo area, but a group of residents hopes to change that.

Citizens for a Healthy Pueblo submitted petitions to the county and state that, if approved, will place measures to ban commercial cultivation and sales of recreational marijuana in the city and county of Pueblo in November.

"We've had this for almost 2 1/2 years, we see what it looks like, and we don't want it for our community," said Charlene Graham, the group's chairwoman.

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A Three-Part Approach Can Satisfy State, Feds Alike

This summer may be a big moment in the national conversation about marijuana. With a decision coming by July 1, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency could partially legalize medical marijuana, and the federal government could usher in a new era with a comprehensive and multi-structural approach to pot policy.

Just don't expect to fill a marijuana brownie prescription at your local drug store any time soon.

Marijuana has been a Schedule I narcotic since 1970. That means, in the eyes of the federal government, marijuana has no medicinal value and is highly addictive.

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Citizens for a Healthy Pueblo submitted more than the required amount of signed petitions to both the City Clerk and the Pueblo County Clerk and Recorder Thursday to place initiatives on the November ballot that would eliminate commercialized marijuana in the city and the county.

The anti-pot group, which has been collecting signatures over the last eight weeks, turned in 4,476 signatures to the city - 2,541 petitions more than the required amount - to City Clerk Gina Dutcher. Dutcher's staff counted the signatures Thursday. The signatures were signed on 177 petition sections.

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The Bill Would Forbid the Use of Federal Funds to Punish Banks.

Banks wishing to do business with the marijuana industry without fear of government reprisal inched closer to reality - again - when a Senate committee Thursday approved a measure - again - to do just that.

A bill nearly identical to one passed by the Senate last year, this time sponsored by Oregon Sen. Jeff Merkley and Washington Sen. Patty Murray, was approved by the Senate Appropriations Committee and would forbid the use of federal funds to penalize a financial institution that works with marijuana enterprises legally operating under state laws.

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Dear Stoner: I've been dealing with migraines for years, and my prescribed medication rarely works. I've been thinking about medical marijuana as an alternative treatment. Does it do anything for migraines?

Ken

Dear Ken: They say that those who deal with migraines and insomnia are the most intelligent and creative people; I am neither, but my dumb ass still dealt with the same issue growing up. I tried all sorts of treatments - aspirin, prescription ibuprofen and Imitrex, multiple MRIs, even locking myself in a dark, silent room - but nothing worked. I've also gotten so stoned that I've forgotten I even had a migraine - but that put me out of commission longer than the headache ever did. Finally, I spoke with a medical marijuana doctor about my condition, and he recommended tinctures and edibles.

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Advocates call for descheduling.

Last week, CannaBiz covered local activists' demonstration outside the Air Force Academy before President Barack Obama's widely watched commencement address. As cars from all over the country poured in, the loosely affiliated Cannabis Patient Rights Coalition spoke out - asking the mayor to stop tightening local regulations and the president to stop classifying cannabis as an illegal narcotic.

That federally illegal status is cause for much consternation in Colorado's burgeoning industry and all those who operate, regulate, litigate, finance and insure it. But, as the activists lining the road into the Air Force Academy on the morning of June 2 readily admit, changing that status has to be done properly.

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I am gravely concerned about the effort to ban the sale, cultivation and testing facilities of recreational marijuana in Pueblo County. Now that marijuana is legal in Colorado, counties have the choice of whether to regulate the industry locally. Through responsible regulation, they create a climate in which jobs are created and tax revenue is generated.

Pueblo County has aggressively regulated the retail marijuana industry. These regulations have added over $3 million in revenue to Pueblo County since 2014. This new revenue stream has benefited all our citizens through scholarships, services for the homeless, 4-H and FFA and other programs.

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I have been following Citizens for a Healthy Pueblo for some time now and I must say I am very disappointed in the name choice. I would say that "citizens against marijuana in Pueblo" would be much more appropriate.

Among marijuana companies, dispensaries open to the public are the largest source of tax for a city. Retail marijuana is taxed more heavily than anything else in the marijuana industry. Last year, the tax collected from marijuana (rivaled) the tax collected from alcohol in Colorado.

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Dear Stoner:I'm going to Vegas in October and wonder if I can use my Colorado medical card to pick up a little medicine while I'm there. Rich

Dear Rich: Nevada is one of the few medical marijuana states with a reciprocity law that allows out-of-state patients to possess and purchase cannabis while they're visiting. Although the state might not have as many dispensaries or options as you'll find in Colorado, Nevada has become a haven for patients coming from states with more restrictive regulations - and those coming from states with no MMJ. A February article in the Las Vegas Sun detailed how pre-screened tourists with a valid California ID or U.S. passport boarded a California-bound bus in Vegas and were connected with a doctor, who evaluated the tourists for a California medical card. If the tourists were approved, a medical marijuana recommendation was printed on the bus in Vegas, where the new patients were then free to visit dispensaries and carry and consume cannabis.

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Even for a city always crawling with military brass, our June 2 visitor was still a cut above. The Commander in Chief was in town to address the Air Force Academy's graduation ceremony - an affair that brought in proud families from all over the country and, of course, sizable media attention.

Local cannabis activists saw an opportunity in the occasion. Rolling out of bed at sunrise, a group of 10 diehards gathered around the Academy's gates to send a message to President Barack Obama, Mayor John Suthers and all the ceremony attendees: Leave patients alone.

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This letter is not to start a debate or argue whether I'm pro-or anti-cannabis. Every person in Pueblo has the right to believe whatever they so choose, along with the right to vote on what's happening within their own county.

I am just informing the people who read The Pueblo Chieftain on what the petition really means and intends to do. There are four types of licenses for marijuana, and there are retail and medical licenses for each.

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When it comes to the war on marijuana in Pueblo, pot proponents claim we should worry about "real" drugs like heroin and prescription drugs- not marijuana. My answer: We do worry. I believe making marijuana legal has only fueled heroin use.

Fifteen years ago physicians and hospitals were told they weren't managing pain adequately. Health care responded. What followed was a national prescription opiate epidemic.

The Center for Disease Control reports prescription opioid abuse leads to a 40-fold increase in heroin use. Yet Colorado opiate prescriptions per 100 residents have decreased (CDC 2014). Our state weighs in at 70, compared with 120 to 140 for the Rust Belt and southern states.

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Dear Stoner: I just got some pot brownies, and I'm not planning to ingest them for two weeks. Do you think the potency will still be the same, and if they'll be okay to eat? Can I heat them up if they go hard?Tasnim

Dear Tasnim: We've talked to multiple cannabis bakeries and kitchens about the shelf life of edibles, and all of them have said that edibles are pretty hard to tarnish in terms of potency, so two weeks definitely wouldn't be long enough to harm your brownies. The "normal" ingredients in them are what you need to worry about, because they'll decay much faster on your kitchen counter than THC would. Throw the brownies in the freezer if you're scared of spoilage, but that's just to fend off mold, not THC degradation. Freezing definitely beats food poisoning - and what a waste of pot that would be!

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Third time was the charm for Congress to pass legislation to let Veterans Administration doctors discuss medical marijuana with patients in states where it's legal (like this one!). From a 195-222 failed House vote in 2014 to a narrower 210-213 loss in 2015, this month the House shifted to a 233-189 approval - reflecting the transformation in public opinion over those years.

Among the "no" votes that failed to stop the action, co-authored by Rep. Jared Polis, D-Boulder, was Rep. Doug Lamborn, R-Colorado Springs. Lamborn, who represents this veteran-laden district and sits on the House Veteran Affairs Committee, has long decried the shortcomings of what he terms "Obama's VA department." Many local vets are as familiar with those shortcomings - the bureaucratic bottlenecking of much-needed care - as they are with elected leaders' failure to effect meaningful reform. And that frustration has fueled the fight for expanded access to medical marijuana to treat the wounds of war, as detailed in the Indy's April 20 cover story "Aim to Heal."

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Richard Kirk Is Charged With Murder, but a Lawsuit Contends That Edible Marijuana Made Him Do It.

DENVER - Kristine Kirk's last moments were a harrowing collision of terror and confusion.

Her husband, Richard, had burst through the door ranting about the end of the world. He began climbing in and out of a first-floor window, lying on the bedroom floor and asking for someone to kill him. Then he retrieved a pistol from his safe.

"He's taking the gun out, sir," Kristine, 44, told a Denver 911 dispatcher. "I don't know where to go.... Richard, please stop ... please stop ... please stop."

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Police Also Recover Suspected Cocaine From Suspects' Vehicles

Police recovered 9.1 pounds of processed marijuana and a little more than $20,000 cash from the room of [name1 redacted], the Fort Lewis College student who was shot and killed early Tuesday during a home invasion.

The marijuana was in plastic bags and glass jars, and all the packaging was marked with product information, according to a news release issued Thursday by the Durango Police Department.

"It is obvious from the packaging and through interviews that this is black market marijuana, and it was being illegally distributed," the release says.

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Dear Stoner: My brother has cancer, and I think medical marijuana would be better for his pain than Oxycontin, which can be addictive. If you were looking for advice on what strains to use, where would you go?

Marge

Dear Marge: Opiate painkillers work for many people, but I've also seen the addictive effects firsthand: Several kids I went to high school with are now doing heroin because of their opiate addictions.

For cancer patients suffering extreme pain and nausea from their conditions and/or chemotherapy, potent and heavy strains are the way to go. Heavy indicas like Afghani, Alien Rock Candy, Bubba Kush or Grape Ape are all great candidates for insomnia and pain relief. Most strains with the word "Purple" in their names and any indica-leaning kush are also usually a safe bet. Sativa strains like Jack Herer, Tangerine Kush and anything Hawaiian are good for stimulating appetites, but they affect everyone differently.

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Plant-count work-arounds

Last week, CannaBiz reported on the plight of Rebecca Lockwood - a local mom who grows marijuana at home to treat her severely autistic son, Calvin, and several other sick kids. Since City Council put a 12-plant limit on residential grows, caregivers like her will have to choose: stop making life-saving medicine or risk arrest. This week, CannaBiz breaks down that choice, because nothing's really ever that simple, is it?

One option for homegrowers is to buy from a dispensary. That is indeed viable if any of the 132 medical marijuana centers in town grow the appropriate strains at an affordable price point. But that's a big "if." Many patients grow at home precisely because those factors are prohibitive.

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I have nothing against the legal use of marijuana. However, after driving by Civic Center on Sunday morning and seeing it trashed by participants of Saturday's pot celebration, I think all future gatherings of this type should be forever banned from city facilities. There were thousands of bottles and other debris strewn over several blocks of Broadway. There were clearly inadequate trash containers, and the participants were slobs. I hope the city has the ability to levy heavy fines against the promoter.

Abby Humphrey,

Denver

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