Jim Finnel
Fallen Cannabis Warrior & Ex News Moderator
Dude, you're not in Colorado anymore.
So you can put your license for legal marijuana away. Because that stopped being legal, oh, about the time you passed Julesburg and crossed the Nebraska border.
A gap in Colorado law is allowing growers to produce far more medical marijuana than patients can legally possess. And some of the surplus is finding its way into Nebraska.
"We've seen it here in the city of Scottsbluff, and we've seen it in the southern Panhandle, and we've seen it around the Sidney area," said Scottsbluff Police Chief Alex Moreno, also a coordinator of an 11-county drug task force.
It's showing up during traffic stops, in drug busts and in cases a prosecutor won't yet discuss. And while it's not pouring over the border, there is enough for law officers to take notice.
"It's not like it's a tidal wave, but it's here and there based on reports I received from officers assigned to the drug task force," Moreno said.
Colorado is making national news for its efforts to regulate the production of medical marijuana, considering, for instance, whether the pot's potency should be tested and labeled. It's also considering standards for pesticide use and rules for organic labeling.
But none of that addresses the legal loophole leading to surplus supplies of medical marijuana.
Licensed patients -- and there were more than 90,000 of them this summer, according to the state of Colorado -- are allowed to have 2 ounces of usable marijuana and up to three mature plants.
The problem? A single mature plant can produce up to a pound of usable marijuana under ideal conditions, according to Colorado's I-News Network.
And even if each plant produced just 3 to 8 ounces, the statewide surplus could reach 64 tons.
Which has to go somewhere.
So why not Nebraska's Panhandle?
"I know there's actually medicinal marijuana that's come into our county," said Scotts Bluff Deputy County Attorney Scott Blaha. In fact, he's getting ready to prosecute a case involving Colorado pot, but that's all he'll say about that.
Officers are finding it on the highway, too.
"They'll have a card that says they can possess it in Colorado," said Lt. Lance Rogers of the Nebraska State Patrol. "But we don't have that law, so we cite them. Does it happen on a regular basis? Sure."
And by regular basis, he said, he means sometimes once a week, sometimes twice a month.
Because of the small amounts, his troopers typically seize the pot, write a ticket and send drivers on their way.
"They're not smugglers," Rogers said. "It's mainly for personal use."
Moreno, the Scottsbluff chief, said his officers are seeing Colorado pot on two fronts -- small amounts intended for personal use, and larger amounts intended to be sold.
Sgt. Dana Korell of the Nebraska State Patrol said an informant told officers the pot was medical marijuana.
But the prosecutor wasn't so sure. One of the bags was simply labeled "medical" with a black Sharpie.
Maybe just a dealer's attempt, said Blaha, to upsell his lower-grade pot.
NewsHawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: Lincoln Journal Star (NE)
Copyright: 2010 Lincoln Journal Star
Contact: oped@journalstar.com
Website: The Lincoln Journal Star Online
Details: MapInc
Author: Peter Salter
So you can put your license for legal marijuana away. Because that stopped being legal, oh, about the time you passed Julesburg and crossed the Nebraska border.
A gap in Colorado law is allowing growers to produce far more medical marijuana than patients can legally possess. And some of the surplus is finding its way into Nebraska.
"We've seen it here in the city of Scottsbluff, and we've seen it in the southern Panhandle, and we've seen it around the Sidney area," said Scottsbluff Police Chief Alex Moreno, also a coordinator of an 11-county drug task force.
It's showing up during traffic stops, in drug busts and in cases a prosecutor won't yet discuss. And while it's not pouring over the border, there is enough for law officers to take notice.
"It's not like it's a tidal wave, but it's here and there based on reports I received from officers assigned to the drug task force," Moreno said.
Colorado is making national news for its efforts to regulate the production of medical marijuana, considering, for instance, whether the pot's potency should be tested and labeled. It's also considering standards for pesticide use and rules for organic labeling.
But none of that addresses the legal loophole leading to surplus supplies of medical marijuana.
Licensed patients -- and there were more than 90,000 of them this summer, according to the state of Colorado -- are allowed to have 2 ounces of usable marijuana and up to three mature plants.
The problem? A single mature plant can produce up to a pound of usable marijuana under ideal conditions, according to Colorado's I-News Network.
And even if each plant produced just 3 to 8 ounces, the statewide surplus could reach 64 tons.
Which has to go somewhere.
So why not Nebraska's Panhandle?
"I know there's actually medicinal marijuana that's come into our county," said Scotts Bluff Deputy County Attorney Scott Blaha. In fact, he's getting ready to prosecute a case involving Colorado pot, but that's all he'll say about that.
Officers are finding it on the highway, too.
"They'll have a card that says they can possess it in Colorado," said Lt. Lance Rogers of the Nebraska State Patrol. "But we don't have that law, so we cite them. Does it happen on a regular basis? Sure."
And by regular basis, he said, he means sometimes once a week, sometimes twice a month.
Because of the small amounts, his troopers typically seize the pot, write a ticket and send drivers on their way.
"They're not smugglers," Rogers said. "It's mainly for personal use."
Moreno, the Scottsbluff chief, said his officers are seeing Colorado pot on two fronts -- small amounts intended for personal use, and larger amounts intended to be sold.
Sgt. Dana Korell of the Nebraska State Patrol said an informant told officers the pot was medical marijuana.
But the prosecutor wasn't so sure. One of the bags was simply labeled "medical" with a black Sharpie.
Maybe just a dealer's attempt, said Blaha, to upsell his lower-grade pot.
NewsHawk: User: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: Lincoln Journal Star (NE)
Copyright: 2010 Lincoln Journal Star
Contact: oped@journalstar.com
Website: The Lincoln Journal Star Online
Details: MapInc
Author: Peter Salter
