Pubdate: Wed, 06 Jun 2012
Source: Aspen Daily News (CO)
Copyright: 2012 Aspen Daily News
Contact: http://www.aspendailynews.com/submit-letter-editor
Website: http://www.aspendailynews.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/635
Author: Curtis Wackerle

COLORADO THE NEW FRONT IN US POT REFORM BATTLE

Amendment 64 Could Make State the First to Allow Legalization

Colorado has become the epicenter of the movement to legalize and 
regulate marijuana, and a proposed amendment on the November ballot 
that would allow adults over 21 years old to use and grow the herbal 
drug could have the added effect of delivering the state for 
President Obama, panelists said Friday at a discussion on the current 
state of pot reform.

While there is no official coordination, Brian Vincente, a Denver 
attorney who is working to pass Amendment 64, said the "yes" on 64 
camp is using a consulting firm that also is working with the Obama 
campaign, and that his group has been relaying messages to the 
campaign's Colorado staff. Specifically, they've shared information 
from one poll on voter enthusiasm that showed single women under 40, 
Latinos and so-called "surge voters" in Colorado - all of whom Obama 
needs a strong turnout from to win the state - are excited to pull 
the lever for Amendment 64, Vincente said.

"Those people are going to vote 'yes' on marijuana because they are 
tired of the drug war," he said.

Vincente was one was one of three attorneys who spoke during the 
discussion - titled "Transitioning from Medical Use to Full 
Legalization" - at the annual three-day Aspen Legal Seminar put on by 
the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, held 
Thursday through Saturday at The Gant. The conference attracts mostly 
attorneys from across the country whose practices deal with marijuana.

Keith Stroup, an attorney who co-founded NORML in 1970, said that 
with the legalization vote and the robust medical marijuana industry 
here, Colorado has become the "epicenter" of the movement to change 
marijuana laws.

"If we are going to make a serious dent in the 850,000 marijuana 
arrests that occur each year in this country, then we'll need to move 
beyond legalizing medical use to legalizing responsible use for all 
adults," Stroup said. "As we often times like to say at NORML, it is 
none of the government's business whether we smoke marijuana or why 
we smoke marijuana."

Vincente said the world will be forever changed if Colorado voters 
approve the measure on Nov. 6. No other state has taken such action; 
a measure in California in 2010 lost by seven percentage points. 
Washington state also has a legalization measure on the 2012 ballot.

"Think about all the clients you've represented over the years whose 
lives have been destroyed by the drug war. It's countless," Vincente 
said, referencing job discrimination and other penalties those who 
have been arrested for marijuana may face. " ... The human toll from 
the drug war, both nationally and internationally - this will be a 
shot across the bow, this will show that in fact there is a different 
way to address this issue."

Vincente noted a recent Rasmussen poll that showed 56 percent of 
Americans in favor of legalizing marijuana and regulating it like 
alcohol or tobacco. That's precisely the message the "yes" on 64 
campaign has been pushing since the ballot effort got going two years 
ago, Vincente said.

"We really don't talk about legalization, although it absolutely is 
legalization," Vincente said. "But what we've found is that the 
public . can understand a regulatory model like alcohol. It's worked 
for decades and decades. It hasn't led to chaos in the streets."

Amendment 64 would legalize possession of up to one ounce of pot for 
adults 21 years and up, and allow individuals to grow up to six 
plants. It would provide for up to a 15 percent tax on marijuana 
sales, the first $40 million of which each year would go to public 
school construction. It also would allow local governments to set up 
their own marijuana licensing systems and policies, and potentially 
exclude retail marijuana shops from their communities if they so 
chose. If passed, the measure would not allow retail operations to 
open until 2014, giving the state time to figure out the details of licensing.

The time period also would be useful because it will give Coloradans 
a window to see how the federal government - which treats marijuana 
as a dangerous drug with no legitimate use - reacts, Vincente said.

The measure also would legalize the industrial production of hemp, 
and it would not change the current rules related to medical marijuana.

Although a similar measure to legalize pot for all in Colorado failed 
in 2006, proponents are banking on the fact that people have become 
more comfortable with pot use with the proliferation of medical 
marijuana dispensaries in Colorado in the last few years.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom