Pubdate: Sun, 09 Dec 2012
Source: Denver Post (CO)
Copyright: 2012, The Associated Press
Contact:  http://www.denverpost.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/122
Author: Terrence Petty
Page: 12A

NEIGHBORS KEEP WATCH ON WASHINGTON STATE

Portland, Ore. (AP) - Now that marijuana is legal in neighboring 
Washington state, Portland police are offering some helpful advice to 
Oregon pot users. Sure, you can go over to Washington state to "smoke 
some weed," a police advisory states, but you might get arrested for 
driving under the influence if you're pulled over coming home, even 
if you're on a bike.

And if you are among the 55,000 people with an Oregon 
medical-marijuana card, Portland police say you'll be able to get 
your allowed amount of medicine in Washington state. Still, even 
though you now can't get busted for toking in Tacoma or elsewhere in 
Washington (though you could get a ticket for public use), it will be 
a year before selling or buying it is legal.

As the Evergreen State works out the various complications of its new 
law - including the fact that marijuana is illegal under federal law 
- - neighbors of Washington are watching with curiosity and perhaps 
some apprehension.

If the federal government doesn't attempt to intervene in the new 
law, and if Washington state sets up a supply system whose mechanics 
are yet to be defined, Washington might well become a greater source 
of pot for users in Oregon and Idaho.

"It would be like a place people go to get cheap beer. We're not 
talking about medical marijuana. We're talking about people who just 
want to get high," said Josh Marquis, district attorney for Oregon's 
Clatsop County.

Marquis said he is not totally opposed to marijuana. He thinks the 
federal government should do what Oregon has done: decriminalize 
possession of small amounts and allow people with genuine medical 
needs to have access for treatment.

But one of his greatest concerns, echoed by other law officials, is 
people going over to Washington to obtain weed and driving home stoned.

"If I'm going to drive on the Oregon coast at night, in the driving 
rain, I want the person on the other side of the road to be 
completely unimpaired," Marquis said.

Idaho law officials are also watching what's happening in Washington 
state. Unlike Oregon, Idaho has no medical-marijuana law, and 
possession in any form is against the law. Simple possession of less 
than 3 ounces is a misdemeanor, punishable by up to a year in jail 
and a $1,000 fine.

Idaho officials already have their hands full with Idahoans obtaining 
medical-marijuana cards out of state. The Gem State borders three 
medical-marijuana states, and medical marijuana arrests outpace those 
of traffickers or other users.

Idaho State Police Lt. Chris Schenk says people in north Idaho are 
joking about so-called "pot tourists" crossing the border to take 
advantage of Washington's relaxed law. But he says it's going to take 
time to gauge any increases in arrests for possession or driving 
under the influence.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom