Lit_Match

Pot vote, Round 2
Possession will remain illegal, no matter what the result
07-30-07|Rocky Mountain News|Editorial

Two years after Denver voters passed an initiative that ostensibly legalized possession of small amounts of marijuana, they'll be asked to enact another ordinance that says, in effect, Yes, we really meant it.

That sentiment seems to be driving a new ballot measure sponsored by Citizens for a Safer Denver, a spinoff of the group that championed both the 2005 Denver ordinance and an unsuccessful statewide legalization amendment last year.

Proponents are pushing this measure in part because they say the cops aren't abiding by the 2005 ordinance. Indeed, the Denver Safety Office of Policy Analysis reported that in 2006, misdemeanor pot busts in Denver rose by 11 percent from the previous year - roughly 250 more arrests in all.

This year's legalization measure, which was certified by the Denver Election Commission July 24, looks certain to reach the ballot - unless the City Council adopts it as an ordinance, which we don't see happening.

The initiative would make busts for marijuana possession by adults the "lowest law enforcement priority" of Denver police. We have no idea what that means, and in practice the city attorney's office, which prosecutes misdemeanor drug offenses, would have to interpret the ordinance if it passes.

If that happens, supporters are suggesting that police would have to not only refuse to bust people caught with marijuana who aren't suspected of any other violations. They'll also have to ignore a bag of weed sitting on a coffee table when they question people during investigations. Or refuse to add a drug charge if they find pot in the possession of a suspect who's been arrested for some other offense.

Of course that's not what the measure actually says. Even if busting people for pot were the "lowest law enforcement priority," that doesn't mean it would be no priority at all. Marijuana possession remains a violation of state law, with a $100 fine as the penalty. And the city, not the district attorney, most often ends up enforcing this particular law.

Until the legislature repeals the pot possession statute, or a city administration decides to take a sharply different tack from the present one, Denver police will continue to make busts.

That's as it should be. Local police agencies should not pick and choose among state laws to enforce. Those statutes are supposed to apply equally to all citizens; individual jurisdictions should not expect the freedom to selectively give a free pass to certain types of lawbreakers.

Though the 2005 legalization amendment got 55 percent of the vote in Denver, Colorado voters statewide rejected the 2006 measure by a 41-59 margin.

The citizens group argues that voters in Denver have different priorities than those in the rest of the state, and that their preferences should be reflected in the law. But if that's so, then they need to convince state lawmakers to change the law to accommodate local choice. Denver voters can't do this unilaterally.

To be fair, such ballot measures do have their uses. Along with the medical marijuana measures that have passed in a number of states, including this one, they act to telegraph public opinion to state and federal leaders. Thanks to such initiatives, for example, it has become clear that federal law is out of step with the public's acceptance of marijuana for the relief of pain.

Maybe this fall's Denver measure will demonstrate for a second time that a majority of city voters disagree with most state voters on whether adults should be able to possess small amounts of marijuana. But that's about all it will demonstrate, because possession itself, under state law, will remain illegal.

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Donation links to NORML (The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws) | MPP (Marijuana Policy Project)