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Denver votes to legalize cannabis use within city limits |
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Written by Chris Conrad
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Denver voters adopted the Alcohol-Marijuana Equalization Initiative
Nov. 1 by 54%, making Denver the first US city to make marijuana legal
for private adult use. The purpose of the initiative is to make the use
and possession of up to one ounce of marijuana non-punishable under
Denver city ordinances for adults 21 and older. It did not cover sales
or cultivation.
Before the vote, on Aug. 17, Capt. John Kilpatrick, Denver Police
Dept. vice and drug bureau, told the Fort Collins Weekly, “If they vote
to pass it, we’ll follow the will of the people.” After the vote there
was a lull in arrests, and the first case after the vote was dismissed
on technical reasons unrelated to the initiative language.
Safer Alternative for Enjoyable Recreation (SAFER), an organization
committed to the fact that marijuana is safer than using alcohol,
spring-boarded from college campus elections to the Denver ballot in an
effort to show support for its message.
“People in Denver were fed up with a law that prohibited adults from making a rational, safer decision” — Mason Tvert
Unlike many states, Colorado has separate municipal and superior
court systems that allow cities to effectively write their own laws. In
California, municipal codes are adopted but legal cases all end up in
state or federal court, where a local ordinance has no direct role. The
purpose of modifying ordinances in California is to change local
enforcement policy, not state law, which requires a statewide action.
Nonetheless, SAFER plans to launch a statewide campaign in Colorado, as well.
“I think it just goes to show that people in Denver were fed up
with a law that prohibited adults from making a rational, safer
decision regarding what they put into their bodies,” said Mason Tvert,
the Safer coordinator who spearheaded Initiative 100. |
Volume Two 
