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2 states challenge Colorado marijuana legalization


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2 states challenge Colorado marijuana legalization
The party is over ??
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Nebraska and Oklahoma on Thursday asked the U.S. Supreme Court to declare Colorado's legalization of marijuana unconstitutional, saying the drug is being brought from Colorado into the neighboring states.
Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning said the states filed a lawsuit seeking a court order to prevent Colorado from enforcing the measure known as Amendment 64, which was approved by voters in 2012. The complaint says the measure runs afoul of federal law and therefore violates the Constitution's supremacy clause, which says federal laws trump state laws.
"This contraband has been heavily trafficked into our state," Bruning said at a news conference in Lincoln. "While Colorado reaps millions from the sale of pot, Nebraska taxpayers have to bear the cost."
In a policy statement last year, the U.S. Justice Department noted it doesn't have the resources to police all violations of federal marijuana law. It laid out eight federal law enforcement priorities that states need to protect if they want to authorize "marijuana-related conduct." They include keeping marijuana in-state — something Oklahoma and Nebraska says Colorado has failed to do.
Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt said Colorado's decision has hindered his state's efforts to enforce its anti-marijuana laws.
"As the state's chief legal officer, the attorney general's office is taking this step to protect the health and safety of Oklahomans," Pruitt said in a statement.
Washington state also has legalized marijuana, but Bruning said Washington wasn't included in the lawsuit because it doesn't share a border with Nebraska or Oklahoma.
Colorado Attorney General John Suthers said the lawsuit was without merit but that he was not totally surprised by it because neighboring states have expressed concerns about Colorado marijuana crossing the border.
"However, it appears the plaintiffs' primary grievance stems from non-enforcement of federal laws regarding marijuana, as opposed to choices made by the voters of Colorado," Suthers said in a statement in which he said Colorado would vigorously defend its law.
Bruning, a Republican, blamed U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder for failing to enforce the federal law's ban on drugs in Colorado.
Legal scholars say it's too early to know how the Supreme Court might handle the case or if it will even accept it.
"Right now, these regulations exist in legal no-man's-land," said Sam Kamin, a University of Denver law professor. "It's incredibly unusual for a state to be suing another state. (The lawsuit) certainly was a surprise to me given the movement at the federal level, which seems to be in favor of allowing states to experiment."
Brian Vicente, a Colorado attorney and legalization advocate who wrote Amendment 64, said the challenge is "political grandstanding" without merit. He said 23 states have enacted medical marijuana laws, and none have been overturned because of federal law.
"I think it shows they are on the wrong side of history," Vicente said. "Colorado voters passed this measure, and more and more states are passing these laws. If the attorney general has a problem with how federal laws are being enforced he should bring that up with the U.S. attorney."
But some law enforcement agencies in western Nebraska, along the Colorado border, say combating marijuana that's coming in from the neighboring state is a drain on their resources.
Scotts Bluff County Sheriff Mark Overman, in western Nebraska, said Colorado marijuana is extra potent, making it worth more in his region and giving sellers a greater financial incentive to do business there.
"I think this is overdue, and I think other states should jump on board," Overman said. "I'm very frustrated. I take an oath of office, as does every other police officer in this country. I don't just get to pick and choose which laws I enforce."
There's no way to know exactly how much legal pot is leaving Colorado. But the Rocky Mountain High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area wrote in a recent report that the amount of Colorado pot seized on highways increased from an annual average of 2,763 pounds between 2005 and 2008 to a yearly average of 3,690 pounds from 2009 to 2013. The weed was headed for at least 40 different states.
The report surveyed law enforcement agencies in Colorado and neighboring ones.
ASIDE:
Reached for comment from his grave, Al Capone, America's best known gangster says..
"They cannot allow "THE WEED" UNLESS they buy my bootlegged booze first...
You knows, likes an after dinner booze enhancer..." :lol:
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Marijuana isn't a drug, more of a natural healing plant. The clear solution is to leagalize marijuana in Nebraska so they won't feel left out and are then forced to make excuses.

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Marijuana isn't a drug, more of a natural healing plant.

r u serious? even tobacco is .i don't know about drugs legalization,it's too complicated but Mary&Juan is a drug what too much junkies started from.

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Marijuana isn't a drug, more of a natural healing plant.

r u serious? even tobacco is .i don't know about drugs legalization,it's too complicated but Mary&Juan is a drug what too much junkies started from.

1) Tobacco is far worse for you than weed. The tobacco companies add toxins to the tobacco for many reasons, none of which are good for the smoker.

2) Yes weed is a drug, we wouldnt be interested in it if it wasnt :doh:

3) Yes legalization is complicated, (and very stupid) thats why weed only needs to be decriminalized and not legalized.

4) As far as your statement about junkies starting on weed...while I am sure many junkies smoked weed first, so have many non-junkies. It is the persons state of mind (or lack of) that makes a junkie a junkie. I and many many people I know have smoked weed for 35yrs or even longer. No junkies here!

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hey Joe seems we r talkin' same but different words .so didn't seen any difference between our posts.

No junkies here!

no judge here.

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Marijuana ,Tobacco , and Alcohol are all drugs and you never hear of no one wreaking a car or blacking out and killing no one smoking a joint. This is Government hypocrisy at its best . If they legalized it in all 50 states like Alcohol is they would not have worry to about all the crime associated with it. This Government is saying its ok to be a drunk but not a pothead makes me wonder do they make more money from drug bust than they would from taxes if it were legalized.

Because fact is it can be grown anywhere and it will always be around just like it has since the beginning of time . Just when its illegal its going to associated with organized crime , If they want to truly stop most of the crime they would make it legal . Its not going away regardless of what they do . And like Stone Cold says that's the bottom line! :lol:

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Let the citizen decide what is the common acceptable "good" for them even if it's just for recreational purpose.

"Life is short, have an affair"
-Ashley Madison


Oooops! :nono:

"Life is short, so enjoy it to the fullest."
-John Walters

That's the one! :tooth:

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From: Colorado, State of

To: Nebraska, State of

CC: Oklahoma, State of

Message:

Go pound sand. If the Feds want to enforce federal drug laws, they have the FBI, the DEA, the DHS, and the federal marshals. We are not doing their job, filling up our jails and costing our taxpayers any more.

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I love it when a person that does not use weed always says its the gateway drug....the first one users use....BULLSHIT! Alcohol is and will always be the first one for ppl to try and look at how many ppl die or get hurt because of alcohol. Pot =0, Alcohol =thousands. The math isn't that difficult. Pot heads get high, eat and goto sleep. They don't cause violence nor do they promote it. Most pot smokers stay to themselves and do their own thing in their house. Now I am talking about mature adults, not teens. Hell, when I was young I got alcohol all the time then when I was 19 I tried pot. Shit I could function on pot where with alcohol your fkd up! lol Ppl who have never tried pot should not even comment or vote on it for they are not even educated other then what the media shows. I have smoked pot for over 30 yrs without failing a drug screen. I pay my own bills, pay my own taxes and feed my family....who are you (they) to judge me or tell me what I should do. I have never gotten in trouble legally and I am a productive citizen in our society. You pay my bills, then maybe I will quit or smoke more. lol

Note: Lets not mention it is used by more states for medical usage then recreation so why not mention them....oh yeah, its medical....I hate to tell you but the reason ppl get medical in the first place is so they can get high legally....it doesn't do crap for pain and us pot heads know it. Now it does help with other conditions to calm a person down and help them eat. Pot is a weed that grows that man doesn't have to process thus it is cleaner and easier on your body. Cigs on the other hand are full of chemicals but they are still around. If a drug doesn't kill you, the fda doesn't want you using it. lol

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It's going to be legal in Oregon after July. Here's an article from our local newspaper earlier this year:

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By Sheriff John Urquhart

When it comes to marijuana, there are a few things we can all probably agree on. No one wants minors using marijuana. No one wants impaired drivers on the road. No one wants the drug cartels or other criminals to profit. While it may seem counterintuitive, legalizing and regulating marijuana can address all of these problems and more.

As sheriff of the largest jurisdiction in the country that has legalized marijuana, I have experience with both the regulated and the criminal market system for marijuana. I know which system works better. And like a growing number of people in law enforcement, I support a regulated approach, because it's a more efficient and effective system for controlling marijuana.

For more than a decade, I was a narcotics detective and witnessed firsthand the failure of the "War on Drugs" and the futility of trying to arrest our way out of it. As a society, we've spent more than $1 trillion and countless hours of police, prosecutor, judge and court staff time, but we have not significantly reduced demand for marijuana. Worse, we have incarcerated generations of individuals (resulting in the highest incarceration rate in the world) and created a system of criminalization and stigmatization that ruins lives — all due to a substance that is considered less damaging than alcohol or tobacco.

The negative repercussions from this failed drug policy are staggering. Consider how much time and money is being thrown away in Oregon. According to the Washington Post, one out of every 14 arrests and citations in Oregon (or about 7 percent) are for marijuana. The Oregon Annual Uniform Crime Report estimates that a marijuana arrest or citation is made every 39 minutes (99,000 in the past decade). In 2010 alone, more than $50 million of your taxpayer money was spent enforcing marijuana possession laws. And these aren't all hardened criminals wreaking havoc on communities. An analysis by the American Civil Liberties Union of Oregon, Oregon State Police data found that 90 percent of the marijuana possession incidents in 2010 involved less than one ounce.

These numbers and expenditures simply do not make sense. It is time for smarter, safer drug laws that control the use of marijuana, while also protecting children and communities, generating revenue for important public needs and freeing up time and resources for law enforcement officials to focus on serious crimes. All of this can be achieved through Measure 91 in Oregon, just as it is through similar policies elsewhere.

In Washington and Colorado, we're already seeing the widespread benefits of regulating marijuana as we separate consumers from gangs and divert the proceeds from the sale of marijuana toward furthering the goals of public safety. In both states, revenue is up and crime is down. In Washington, court filings regarding marijuana possession have plummeted from 5,531 in 2012 to only 120 in 2013; and economists are projecting $51 million in tax revenue in the 2015-2017 biennium. In Colorado, the state has received more than $27.2 million in taxes, licenses and fees in the first four months of legalization with $1.9 million being distributed to state programs in March alone.

With these kinds of results, it should come as no surprise that an increasing number of law enforcement officials support the legalization and regulation of marijuana. Yet, their voices often go unheard as they are bound by their legal obligations to enforce the current law (despite the fact that it's failing) and can't come forward in public forums.

Today, I'm speaking from experience and I'm speaking on their behalf. I supported the Washington measure to regulate marijuana and I support Measure 91 in Oregon because no officers anywhere should have to spend their valuable time on petty marijuana arrests instead of more serious law enforcement priorities. As a society, our time and our money could be put to better use. As citizens, we deserve policies that truly protect and serve the greater good.

John Urquhart is the sheriff of King County, Wash.

http://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2014/10/legalizing_marijuana_will_boos.html

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first gateway drug of consequence is not pot...it is beer...that being said, not every person that uses beer becomes a heroin or crack addict...same is true of those who smoke pot...the losers that graduate to the hard core shite have way more issues and screw up their lives reguardless with any drug...be it pot beer wine or hard booze or had core street drugs... the average person who uses pot uses the same way the way someone else uses beer, wine or assorted other hard liquors...IN MODERATE AMOUNTS because lets face it, yes you can screw up your life with pot just as you can with alcohol..... all i know is that i see and know far more people with totally screwed up lives from alcohol abuse/addiction than i see with people who are life long pot smokers...problem is as with almost all addiction...especially booze and hard core drugs your body can take the abuse you give it for a very long time before you wake up one day and find your life in ruins and you find yourself wonderin where the last 30 years went and why you are all alone.... don'r believe me go talk to ANY recovering addict be it beer, wine coke crack or pot who happens to be over 40

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