Colorado Springs Mayor Steve Bach will veto any action taken by the City Council that would allow retail marijuana sales for recreational use, he said Monday. Bach said the Springs needs to join neighboring cities, including Woodland Park and Castle Rock, and ban such sales. "This is so important to our community and in our best interest that I will respectfully need to veto anything short of opting out," Bach said. City Council is expected to discuss two possible options Tuesday: Ban retail sales of marijuana for recreational use; or, allow sales, but delay them until after the November election when Colorado voters will be asked to tax the sales of pot for recreational use. [continues 562 words]
When Coloradans passed Amendment 64, they voted for The Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol Act of 2012. So what is the dilemma on taxation and regulation? Tax it like alcohol. Why waste more taxpayer dollars on an unneeded ballot initiative? Taxes that are viewed as too high will encourage underground enterprises. Regulate it like alcohol. Cultivate it under similar rules that govern Colorado-based microbreweries/distilleries . like alcohol. And, if localities decide to ban retail marijuana establishments, that ban should also apply to all establishments that hold liquor licenses. They, too, must be banned. Equal prohibition. [continues 52 words]
Each speaker who stood at the podium in City Hall on Thursday made a compelling argument about potential retail marijuana sales in Colorado Springs. Selling marijuana in retail stores could lead to more traffic crashes and fatalities, said Colorado Springs Police Chief Pete Carey. On the other hand, selling marijuana could boost the economy with jobs and sales tax revenue. For every point there was a counterpoint as residents in a standing-room only hall waited patiently to speak. "The black market has no rules, no regulations," said Don McKay, co-owner of Southern Colorado Medical Marijuana. "Marijuana comes across the border in bales but the money goes back across in shoe boxes. If we regulate, we can define the rules, say where the stores will be, who sells it, and generate jobs for local residents." [continues 530 words]
Paige Figi found two notes left on her front door and took numerous phone calls this week from people wanting information or expressing thanks regarding her decision to use medical marijuana to ease her 6-year-old daughter's near-constant seizures. "People just are desperate" for help, said Figi, who lives in Black Forest. "And nothing will work." Figi tried everything to help daughter Charlotte before turning to marijuana. She was hesitant about the idea - almost resistant at first. Stricken with Dravet syndrome, Charlotte suffered seizures so severe she couldn't walk or feed herself. Her parents tried powerful medications and a highly specialized diet. None worked for more than a few months. Charlotte's seizures continued. [continues 364 words]
Civic leaders worried about retail marijuana sales in Colorado say it's a matter of perception. They don't expect pot to pour onto local military bases when retail sales of recreational reefer start in 2014. They do expect states competing for increasingly scarce defense spending to blow smoke about Colorado's permissive policy in a bid to pull troops and programs from the state. With massive defense cuts looming, where there's marijuana smoke, there's worry. "It's not always good being first," said Andy Merritt, head of military affairs for the Colorado Springs Regional Business Alliance. [continues 810 words]
Colorado Springs is at another crossroads. The city has transitioned to a strong mayor form of government. The local housing market is beginning to recover from the recession. So far we appear to be surviving sequestration. But in the coming weeks the city must decide whether to allow retail marijuana sales. Amendment 64, approved by Colorado voters in 2012, has moved into the implementation phase. Regulation of the many details concerning legalized marijuana is a daunting task. One of those details is an enormous one - legal retail sale of pot within the city limits. The amendment permits "the licensing of cultivation facilities, product manufacturing facilities, testing facilities, and retail stores;" It also allows each locality to determine whether it will allow retail stores and then create regulations to govern those stores. Or, they can simply opt out or establish a moratorium, as Pueblo and many other municipalities have done. El Paso County has already banned retail sales and so has Woodland Park, a mountain community known for its scenic beauty. Colorado Springs should do the same. [continues 587 words]
Last year the citizens of Colorado voted to allow the possession of recreational marijuana. They also voted to give local authorities the power to decide whether the sale and distribution of the drug would be allowed within their jurisdiction. Locally, there is a lot riding on this decision by our City Council and there is no requirement that they rush into it. The smartest short-term solution might be to just wait to decide whether to legalize local production and sales until we see what happens in Colorado jurisdictions that have authorized the sale of recreational marijuana. [continues 422 words]
I support allowing retail sales of marijuana in Colorado Springs for many of the same reasons I supported allowing medical marijuana dispensaries when I was on City Council. It's always been an issue of freedom for me, and of states' rights. Prohibition obviously has been a disaster. And we so rarely see an expansion of liberty in the so-called Land of the Free that I wanted to help make this one work. I didn't believe it served the city's interests to disrespect voters, or to trample on newfound freedoms simply because the new rules confused the work of law enforcers or complicated the conversations we have with our kids about the dangers of drugs. I feel the same way today, as I'm guessing most locals do. [continues 373 words]
Six-year-old Charlotte Figi, a picture of precious in her "Gatsby"-style bob and blue toenails, stands patiently as her mother reaches up her dress to change her out of her soiled Pull-Ups. - Charlotte never says a word. She hasn't in the past hour, and won't for at least another 30 minutes, when she finally whispers the name of a visitor who is about to leave. In the Figi household, these are signs of progress: Charlotte saying something. Charlotte eating and drinking. Charlotte standing and walking. [continues 3208 words]
Woodland Park joined a growing number of Colorado municipalities Thursday night in banning retail marijuana. The city council of the 7,000-person mountain town voted 3-2 to amend city code to prohibit marijuana cultivation, testing, product manufacturing, clubs and retail sales, a law that takes effect as soon as the city publishes the updated version. The city's moratorium on medical marijuana was set to expire July 1. The decision came at about 11:30 p.m. Michael Slivka, an attorney in Woodland Park, was the only town resident to give comment, backed pot retailing. [continues 482 words]
Despite Mayor Steve Bach's opposition to retail marijuana stores, the Colorado Springs City Council may be leaning toward approval, provided the "freshmen six" stick to their campaign promises. The six new council members, along with three returning council members, will decide over the summer whether to allow retail pot stores in Colorado Springs. They've already heard public comments from proponents who say the city needs to follow the will of voters who approved Amendment 64 in November, allowing retail marijuana sales in Colorado. They've also heard from retired generals and university officials who say selling pot in retail stores is bad for the community and will hurt economic development. [continues 912 words]
As Pentagon officials mull a decision that could help or harm Colorado Springs, the choice by Colorado voters to legalize pot could prove costly. Public officials must, like never before, work to keep soldiers off drugs. Looming budget cuts will force the Pentagon to cut Army personnel by 80,000. If all goes well for the Springs, the cuts will cause a realignment of operations that would relocate roughly 3,000 soldiers to Fort Carson. That means our community would benefit from 3,000 additional taxpaying consumers, along with their families, who will boost the local economy. [continues 730 words]
The Colorado Springs City Council will host public hearings this summer to talk about pot. The council must decide whether the city will allow retail marijuana sales or ban them. And there is much to consider in the meantime, said Kyle Sauer of the city attorney's office. Sauer told the council during its Monday work session that it faces a broad spectrum of options either way. The city could, for instance, regulate the time, place and manner of retail marijuana sales, he said. That means the council could limit the number of retail shops; it could add a special marijuana sales tax; it could hold off on the details by way of a moratorium; or it could ban retail marijuana sales altogether. [continues 506 words]
A majority of Colorado voters told state government last November that marijuana should be legal. They did so after hearing promises of a legal marijuana trade generating money for education while mostly destroying a dangerous black market that made mockery of drug laws. Ads made legal marijuana revenues sound like manna from heaven. Marijuana remains illegal by federal law. That means little in Colorado because the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Printz v. United States that federal authorities may not direct local or state law enforcers to administer or enforce federal laws. Given the limited presence of federal cops in Colorado, and other states, federal laws will do little to curtail marijuana use and transactions in Colorado. [continues 503 words]
El Paso County prosecutors are taking a new tack in the battle over medical marijuana held by police in the wake of failed prosecutions. They want out of the fight. The 4th Judicial District Attorney's Office last week said it had declined to take a position on a demand by Rocky Mountain Miracles owner Alvida Hillery that police return her marijuana or hand over $3.3 million in compensation after her December jury acquittal on felony drug charges. Authorities seized more than 36 pounds of marijuana and 604 pot plants during a March 2012 raid on Hillery's dispensary, 2316 E. Bijou St. [continues 361 words]
I just wanted to take a moment to thank The Gazette for printing the Jan. 7 story on medical marijuana. I thought the writer (Lance Benzel) took a risk by including some Elisa Kappelmann quotes that excoriated District Attorney Dan May's handling of the case, and personally, I thought they were justified. I am a former Republican precinct chair who followed the case closely because one of my clients was working in the field. I watched the District Attorney's office bully and bluff their way through a case that seemed aimed at ruining a life in order to frighten the industry. [continues 220 words]
A medical marijuana grower acquitted of drug-cultivation charges at a December trial wants Colorado Springs police to return her marijuana - or fork over $3.3 million in compensation. The request by Alvida Hillery is the latest sign that failed medical marijuana prosecutions in El Paso County might end up costing taxpayers. Hillery, founder of the Rocky Mountain Miracles medical marijuana dispensary at 2316 E. Bijou St. in the city's Knob Hill neighborhood, was found not-guilty of felony drug charges after a three-day trial last month. [continues 417 words]
Last month Colorado voters resoundingly passed Amendment 64 into the state constitution, legalizing both recreational marijuana and industrial hemp. So far, realizing the will of the voters is on track, but implementation risks threaten to undermine the intentions behind Amendment 64. Policy makers are contending with thriving black markets and gray markets (goods or services that while legal, are still traded outside of any tax or regulatory regime), so it is in their best interests to get this right-even if they didn't support the initiative in the first place. [continues 646 words]
When Colorado voters legalized marijuana, they set the stage for another great states rights battle with Uncle Sam. President Barack Obama weighed in last week, saying on Friday he is willing to consider relaxing federal enforcement of marijuana laws for those who possess small amounts. "It does not make sense from a prioritization point of view for us to focus on recreational drug users in a state that has already said that under state law that's legal," Obama told ABC News. [continues 459 words]
Amendment 64 passed by just 10 votes in El Paso County in November, but neighborhood by neighborhood, the vote was anything but close. The center of Colorado Springs said yes to legalizing limited marijuana use by a strong margin, while suburbs and rural areas overwhelmingly said no, according to a Gazette precinct analysis of election results. There are exceptions. Palmer Lake and Ramah, far from the city center, both voted for legalization. And some relatively affluent Colorado Springs neighborhoods, including Rockrimmon and Upper Skyway, voted against it. But in general, the nearer voters were to the urban core, the more likely they were to give marijuana the thumbs up. [continues 501 words]
Back in 2000, the people voted for qualifying patients to receive safe access to medical cannabis. There are rules and regulations as to law enforcements handling of such. The problem is that our district attorney has chosen to waste hundreds of thousands of your taxpayer dollars prosecuting sick patients and law-abiding businesses that are following "the rules," for his own agenda - attorney general. Cannabis patients and businesses make easy targets and make easy wins when they are scared or misinformed into taking less then desirable plea deals. [continues 287 words]
Amendment 64's legalization of marijuana drew the nation's eyes to Colorado on Election Day. In the ensuing media frenzy, another portion of the ballot measure got lost - Colorado will likely legalize the cultivation of industrial hemp. Tons of industrial hemp is imported into Colorado and other states annually from Canada, China and other countries, and hemp products are manufactured and sold throughout the country. But it remains illegal to grow hemp in the United States under federal law. Hemp proponents say cultivating the plant would create an industry and could be a boon to the economies of Colorado and the nation. [continues 494 words]
Caring Adults Must Take on This Task Colorado voters legalized marijuana by a significant margin. The constitutional amendment passed even in El Paso County - a jurisdiction known for conservative, Christian values. This means the desire to stop using cops and courts to fight a common weed has come mainstream. It means legalization isn't favored only by hippies and addicts. Legalization passed by 10 votes in El Paso County, and we can say with near certainty that analysis of precincts within Colorado Springs will show relatively strong support. [continues 449 words]
Where is the wisdom? This possibly was the most important election America has seen for many years. With Amendment 64 on our ballot, the citizens of Colorado made a crucial decision. Colorado decided that it would be the first state to legalize marijuana with Amendment 64. Through this amendment, citizens over the age of 21 are allowed to own and use an ounce of marijuana. This may not sound like much, but from only one ounce, you can produce between 50-60 joints. That is a lot of pot. If you decide to utilize this new right, there is significant danger, because the making of marijuana is not regulated or inspected by the FDA to ensure quality. This means that marijuana growers do not have to make quality products. This could pose some serious problems for people who smoke marijuana. [continues 103 words]
Bob Crouse drove away from the Colorado Springs police annex on East Rio Grande Street Friday afternoon with a huge smile on his face and his hand raised in victory. A crowd of about two dozen medical marijuana supporters cheered loudly moments after police returned 60 pounds of now-wilted pot once worth an estimated $300,000 to the leukemia patient. "Today I'm so very grateful and so very thankful," said Crouse with tears in his eyes. "We want all patients to have access to their medicine. That's what this is all about." [continues 345 words]
A 10-year-old girl was arrested Tuesday after bringing allegedly marijuana to Evans International Elementary School. El Paso County Sheriff's deputies escorted the girl from Evans in handcuffs after getting the call from Falcon District 49 about 2:30 p.m. She was later released to a parent. The girl apparently got the pot from a relative with a medical marijuana card, Sgt. Joe Roybal of the Sheriff's Office said. According to Roybal, less than an ounce of marijuana was allegedly found on the girl who was "showing it to fellow students." [continues 114 words]
It is stunning that 53 percent of Colorado voters supported the legalization of marijuana on Tuesday. We all know that the percentage of pot smokers is far less than that, so obviously, many voted for it for reasons other than an interest in getting high. Someone voted for it because pot reduced the side effects of Aunt Betty's chemotherapy. Some voted for it because they couldn't remember ever hearing about a pot-crazed husband beating up his wife. Some voted for it because they had grown weary of the shenanigans of state and local officials, who did their best to undermine the medical marijuana initiative approved by 54 percent of Colorado voters in 2000. [continues 313 words]
Authorities held on to a Colorado Springs leukemia patient's stash of medical marijuana Friday, even after a court ordered its return. Bob Crouse, who was acquitted on felony drug charges in late June, and his attorney Clifton Black went to the Police Operation Center on Friday and were greeted by news of a possible appeal by the 4th Judicial District Attorney's Office. "They said they were sorry we were told one thing yesterday and another thing today," Crouse said after a police officer explained the situation to him behind closed doors. "They said they were just following instructions." [continues 347 words]
We have a clear message for men, women and children: Don't use recreational drugs. We have an equally clear message for the Colorado Springs City Council: Don't waste political capital on nonbinding resolutions. Ballots will go out to voters on Monday and each will contain a question asking them to legalize and regulate marijuana in much the same manner as the state regulates alcohol. The Gazette has taken no position. Strong arguments have been made on each side and we respect anyone who believes opposition to 64 sends an important anti-drug message. We also hear those who believe the taxation and regulation of a drug - one that's abundant in nearly all segments of society - may do more to protect children than decades of failed prohibition measures. [continues 412 words]
The Colorado Springs City Council and the El Paso County Commissioners on Tuesday gave a thumbs down to Amendment 64, the statewide measure that would regulate marijuana like alcohol. But for council, it wasn't without controversy. Calling Amendment 64 "a bastardization of the Colorado Constitution, the council voted 5-1, with council President Pro Tem Jan Martin opposed and City Councilman Tim Leigh refusing to vote on the matter. "I wasn't afraid of medical marijuana dispensaries, and I'm not afraid of this bill," Martin said. [continues 480 words]
A statewide ballot measure asking voters to legalize possession of small amounts of marijuana in Colorado will be center stage Tuesday in Colorado Springs. The City Council plans to consider a resolution opposing Amendment 64 on the November ballot. "We need to hear from you and know where our city leadership stands on this issue," Jo McGuire, drug and alcohol compliance manager for a Springs-based drug-testing company, told council members last week in an email requesting the resolution. In an interview Monday, McGuire said she is one of two El Paso County volunteers for the No on 64 campaign. McGuire called the ballot measure "drastic" and "extreme." [continues 494 words]
Let's face it: at present, anyone in Colorado who wants to smoke marijuana can get it. There are "medical marijuana" stores on every corner, and so-called caregivers to help one get it. As well, there are dealers everywhere. We do not need Proposition 64. It will not be a sales tax windfall as, unlike tobacco, it is cheap and easy to grow oneself. That said, why would anyone smoke pot? It is addictive and known to contribute to mental disorders, (including schizophrenia), learning disabilities, infertility (both male and female), birth defects, cancers (much more so than tobacco smoke), gynecomastia (male breast enlargement), and numerous brain diseases. THC is stored in human tissue; especially fat cells. The effects can stay with the user for indefinite periods, even if he or she stops using. Worse, he or she can pass genetic disorders to an unborn child, even if not smoking during pregnancy. Is it fair for a parent to do this? [continues 179 words]
A small but determined group of veterans gathered before the downtown Colorado Springs courthouse on Thursday to demand that those with post-traumatic stress disorder be allowed to use medical marijuana. The rally was organized to announce a new campaign, "Veterans for 64." Amendment 64, which would legalize marijuana, is on the Nov. 6 ballot. The group was formed because veterans say the state has denied a plea to allow PTSD victims to get prescriptions for medical marijuana. About a dozen veterans at the gathering waved signs at cars, with slogans such as "marijuana saves veterans." [continues 382 words]
Concerning the Point/Counterpoint opinion on Amendment 64 (Sept. 23), it's fascinating to read how two conservatives present medical marijuana from polarized points of view. I disagree with Tom Tancredo and John Suthers for different reasons. Tancredo's argument for the legalization of marijuana in Colorado is based on the failed alcohol prohibition of the 1920s, state's rights, and tax revenue profits. Suthers' argument for the restriction of medical marijuana is based on the supposed harm of the drug, as well the majority opinion of various professionals against it. [continues 297 words]
Pro: Prohibition has failed us Exactly 80 years ago, the people of this great state passed a ballot initiative declaring an end to the misguided big-government policy experiment that was alcohol prohibition. One year later, the federal government followed. This November, the voters of Colorado have the opportunity to repeat history. On the ballot is Amendment 64, an initiative that would end marijuana prohibition in the state and regulate the production and sale of the substance. In many ways, marijuana prohibition is very similar to alcohol prohibition. Nowhere is this more apparent than in their impact on public safety. [continues 1360 words]
Let's not be fooled by Amendment 64 to "regulate marijuana like alcohol." Instead, let's put Amendment 20 on hold until we know more about marijuana and have appropriate controls in place. Proponents of Amendment 20 induced independent and liberty-loving citizens to legalize marijuana for medical use and promised conservative citizens increased tax revenues and humane pain management. Instead of independence, liberty and humane pain management, we have a drugged population too stupefied to deal with life in an unaltered state of consciousness and levels of government unable to regulate or control the increasing drug industry. [continues 117 words]
U.S. Attorney John Walsh sent out ten letters to medical marijuana dispensaries within 1,000 feet schools in Southern Colorado Friday ordering them to close. This is the third wave of letters sent by Walsh within the past year ordering medical marijuana dispensaries near schools to close within 45 days or face prosecution by the U.S. Attorney's Office. Walsh's office would not identify the ten targeted businesses. It's part of a Justice Department effort to protect children from the exposure to marijuana and the dispensaries, said Jeff Dorschner a spokesmen for the agency. [continues 320 words]
El Paso County commissioners approved a resolution last week to amend the county's medical marijuana policy. Attorney Charles Houghton represented two medical marijuana dispensary owners who sat through six hours of the board's meeting before commissioners dispensed with other business and reached their agenda item. "It was a very good day," said Houghton, who has more than a dozen medical marijuana businesses for clients. "Both of my clients got what they wanted. County commissioners are cognizant that the industry is changing and are aware they need to make some changes in policy. I'm very happy they did." [continues 196 words]
One is a cancer patient and former restaurateur who says he believes that oil derived from marijuana holds the cure to his leukemia. The other - a Colorado Springs woman who left a corporate job to join the state's booming medical marijuana trade, only to be swept up in a 2010 raid on growers who shared a local warehouse. In June, Robert Crouse and Elisa J. Kappelmann - defendants in two of El Paso County's most closely watched marijuana prosecutions - are headed for jury trials at a time when many similar cases quietly end in plea agreements. [continues 659 words]
Air Force Academy officials expect to discipline at least seven cadets after a months-long investigation into reports of illegal drug use at the academy. No names of cadets punished for illegal drug use - nor specifics of the discipline they received - were released Wednesday, more than three months after academy officials began investigating cadets' use of banned substances. But the statistics offer the first glimpse into an inquiry that involved 31 cadets - some of whom are intercollegiate athletes - and that mirrored past investigations of a synthetic substance called Spice, which mimics the effects of marijuana. [continues 218 words]
I don't think we've had a serious debate on the pros and cons of legalizing marijuana in our area. There seems to be a minority who are almost fanatical in their support of legalizing the sale of marijuana, and the great majority who are not engaged or who simply don't seem to care much one way or the other. Having been one of the indifferent majority, I've recently concluded that we should be very much concerned about this issue. [continues 312 words]
An attack seizes Chaz Moore's body, stealing much of his breath. Spasms in his throat, lungs and diaphragm cause the 17-year-old to speak in hiccups, one syllable at a time. He says it feels like a grown man is jumping on his chest as the muscles in his belly roll like waves. Chaz opens a jar labeled MMJ, pulls out some fresh green buds and crumbles the marijuana into a small pipe. He lights up the bowl and inhales as deeply as possible through the spasms, turning to blow smoke out his bedroom window. [continues 988 words]
Behind two locked doors Sunday evening, employees at the Indispensary, a medical marijuana dispensary on East Bijou Street, were frantically working to close up shop. After receiving a federal mandate in early January to close by Monday or risk seizure and criminal prosecution, owners of the business decided to shut down on Sunday. They closed their shop to the public early and scurried behind scenes to pack up the remaining marijuana inventory and leave by 7 p.m. - the closing time dictated by state law. [continues 567 words]
In her letter of Jan. 27, Theresa Null, describes an acquaintance "Sarah", who had a stressful family life, made an apparent escape but then began using medical marijuana (MMJ), which, Null claims, caused "Sarah" to sink into apathy, affecting her responsibilities and relationships. Null lists a whole litany of "Sarah" social ills (and bills) all of which she blames on (MMJ) thus dishing us up one of the most popular logical fallacies: Coincidental is not causal. Given all of the things which have happened to Sarah, bad and good, it would take a gutsy professional to assign the blame for her apathy, let alone we amateurs. Some medical marijuana strains are suggested for their calming effect, others to energize the user. [continues 78 words]
What is wrong with the CSPD VNI and the D.A.? There is a difference, a huge difference, between a cancer patient growing medical marijuana for relief of leukemia symptoms and an illegal black market dealer. How can the "trained" professionals in Colorado Springs Police Vice, Narcotics, and Intel really be unable to tell the difference? It seems a shame that even the District Attorney's Office is also unable to discern the difference between the two. Bob Crouse has leukemia and has had this terrible disease for some time now. Cancer patients are typically unable to work, and hence have little money. Given that, Crouse was growing this expensive medicine for himself in the privacy of his home, until last year, when Colorado Springs Police Vice decided to raid his house and destroy his garden. [continues 176 words]
I am concerned about "medical marijuana," a push to legalize it and how it affects our community. A young lady who I care for, call her "Sarah," dropped out of high school to work full time to provide for her mom, older sister, older sister's baby and boyfriend. Sarah ended up getting her GED about the same time as her peers graduated high school and worked two jobs. She met a wonderful man; stopped supporting her deadbeat relatives; worked one job; and had 2 children. I was proud that she overcame obstacles in her life. [continues 164 words]
The year that medical marijuana dispensaries were approved by the voters of Colorado, drug-related school suspensions and expulsions rose by 40 percent. Despite numerous school and community sponsored drug education programs, drug use by adolescents of all ages has sharply increased with this law. I am personally aware of the horrendous side effects of chemotherapy and other medical procedures. However, the THC medicinal benefits of marijuana are readily available in alternative medications, and are found and regulated at the local drugstore. [continues 77 words]
The Gazette's recent editorial (Jan. 13 - "Suthers should defend MMJ law") lecturing me on my responsibilities as Colorado Attorney General reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of the rule of law in America. As Colorado's Attorney General I take an oath to uphold the U.S. Constitution and the Colorado Constitution. As part of this job, I frequently urge upon the state and federal courts a particular interpretation of these constitutional documents. But the final word on the meaning of the U.S. Constitution is the U.S. Supreme Court and the final word on the meaning of the Colorado Constitution is the Colorado Supreme Court. In a dispute on whether federal laws trump state laws under the Supremacy Clause, the U.S. Supreme Court has the final say. [continues 324 words]
The U.S. Attorney's Colorado office plans to send additional letters to medical marijuana dispensaries, suggesting that last week's letters are just the beginning of a federal crackdown. On Jan. 13, the attorney's office sent letters to 23 dispensaries located within 1,000 feet of a school, a violation of federal law. One of the letters went to Indispensary in Colorado Springs. More dispensaries will be targeted by a second round of letters, said Jeff Dorschner, the spokesman for the office. [continues 533 words]
It's a fact: Cannabis (marijuana) is safer than alcohol, and that fact doesn't change (Letters: "Sorry message about pot," Jan. 11) between adults or teens. Historically, the message from prohibitionists to teens about cannabis is full of lies, half-truths and propaganda and has contributed to increased hard drug addiction rates, contempt for all drug laws, erosion of the U.S. Constitution and has done nothing good. One recent study even indicates states which have legalized medical cannabis are experiencing lower alcohol usage and less traffic fatalities ("Study: States That Legalized Medical Pot See Decrease," The Missoulian, Dec. 28, 2011). It's commendable to keep youth away from cannabis but caging responsible adults for using the extremely popular God-given plant (see the first page of the Bible) is the wrong way to do it. Stan White Dillon [end]
