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It's Time To Ease Up On Pot, Former Cop Says
10/25/07|Rocky Mountain News| By Daniel J. Chacon

A retired Denver police lieutenant stood alongside marijuana activists Wednesday to endorse a Nov. 6 initiative that would make adult possession of less than an ounce of pot the "lowest law enforcement priority" in the city.
Lt. Tony Ryan said he's not advocating drug use but that the city's resources would be better spent fighting violence and property crime, rather than busting people for possessing small amounts of marijuana.

"I was a street officer most of my career through the ranks and homicides, rapes, assaults, domestic violence, alcohol was involved in every one of them," he said.

"Seldom is marijuana involved, and if it was, it wasn't a cause as alcohol was."

Detective John White, a police spokesman, said Ryan is a "retired police officer (who) does not represent the position of the Denver Police Department."

Ryan, a member of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition, said he's not saying police should violate their oath to uphold the law.

"They have to do their job," he said. "But they don't have to go out of their way to do it."

Voters have been getting "robo-calls" from Ryan in support of Question 100. Ryan identifies himself as a "36-year veteran" but not that he's retired. He acknowledged that some people might think he's representing police.

"We talked about that, that some people might mistake that," he said.

"I would apologize if somebody misconstrues that."