Robert Celt
New Member
Since residents cast their vote for retail marijuana in 2012, Colorado leaders are attempting to measure how the state's financials, law enforcement and health have been affected. As one of the provisions of Amendment 64, a new study was released by the Colorado Department of Public Safety in an effort to better grasp these trends.
While the 146-page document is chock-full of information, the study is careful to warn "the lack of pre-commercialization data, the decreasing social stigma and challenges to law enforcement combine to make it difficult to translate these early findings into definitive statements of outcomes."
As of December 2015, Summit County has 22 total licenses through the Marijuana Enforcement Division (MED), including three medical centers, four retail stores, four cultivations and 11 product manufacturers.
Statewide, there were a total of 2,538 MED-licensed businesses in Colorado, bringing in more than $135 million in tax revenues, licenses and fees in 2015. Of this, more than $35 million was dedicated to capital construction assistance for schools.
Despite the legalization of recreational marijuana, as of November 2015, there were 109,922 individuals registered as medical marijuana cardholders statewide. In Summit County, this translated to 1,003 cardholders – less than one percent of total patients.
FEWER ARRESTS
Unsurprisingly, marijuana-related arrests have decreased sharply in Summit County over the past few years, mirroring statewide trends.
"We dealt with a lot, obviously, prior to legalization," Summit County Sheriff John Minor said. "Sometimes differentiating between medicinal marijuana and contraband marijuana was extremely difficult."
The total number of marijuana-related arrests in Summit dropped from 63 in 2012, to just five in 2013 and 2014. Statewide, the number of marijuana-related arrests during the three-year timeframe decreased 46 percent, from 12,894 to 7,004.
According to the report, marijuana possession arrests saw the largest decrease, slashed nearly in half. Meanwhile, sales arrests decreased 24 percent, while arrests for production saw little change.
"It's mainly consuming it in the wrong place, as in public," Minor said. "Defining 'public' is the great challenge because it's not as simple as it sounds."
He added his office occasionally responds to complaints about odor issues, as well as a few regarding the extraction of hash oil at home, which was made a felony in Colorado last July following several butane explosions statewide. In 2013, the sheriff's office intercepted several pounds of cannabis being shipped out through the mail.
Silverthorne acting police chief Misty Higby concurred that, while her agency has made fewer marijuana-related arrests since Amendment 64 was passed, the situation is not quite as rosy as it might seem.
"It doesn't mean there haven't been other problems," she said, adding the department has occasionally seen issues with individuals purchasing cannabis and then giving it to others illegally. She added the department has also addressed minors in possession of marijuana without medical documentation.
"I'm not sure if that has changed since legalization," she said.
News Moderator: Robert Celt 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Colorado Marijuana Report Shows More Revenue, Fewer Arrests Since Legalization
Author: Elise Reuter
Photo Credit: Elise Reuter
Website: Summit Daily
While the 146-page document is chock-full of information, the study is careful to warn "the lack of pre-commercialization data, the decreasing social stigma and challenges to law enforcement combine to make it difficult to translate these early findings into definitive statements of outcomes."
As of December 2015, Summit County has 22 total licenses through the Marijuana Enforcement Division (MED), including three medical centers, four retail stores, four cultivations and 11 product manufacturers.
Statewide, there were a total of 2,538 MED-licensed businesses in Colorado, bringing in more than $135 million in tax revenues, licenses and fees in 2015. Of this, more than $35 million was dedicated to capital construction assistance for schools.
Despite the legalization of recreational marijuana, as of November 2015, there were 109,922 individuals registered as medical marijuana cardholders statewide. In Summit County, this translated to 1,003 cardholders – less than one percent of total patients.
FEWER ARRESTS
Unsurprisingly, marijuana-related arrests have decreased sharply in Summit County over the past few years, mirroring statewide trends.
"We dealt with a lot, obviously, prior to legalization," Summit County Sheriff John Minor said. "Sometimes differentiating between medicinal marijuana and contraband marijuana was extremely difficult."
The total number of marijuana-related arrests in Summit dropped from 63 in 2012, to just five in 2013 and 2014. Statewide, the number of marijuana-related arrests during the three-year timeframe decreased 46 percent, from 12,894 to 7,004.
According to the report, marijuana possession arrests saw the largest decrease, slashed nearly in half. Meanwhile, sales arrests decreased 24 percent, while arrests for production saw little change.
"It's mainly consuming it in the wrong place, as in public," Minor said. "Defining 'public' is the great challenge because it's not as simple as it sounds."
He added his office occasionally responds to complaints about odor issues, as well as a few regarding the extraction of hash oil at home, which was made a felony in Colorado last July following several butane explosions statewide. In 2013, the sheriff's office intercepted several pounds of cannabis being shipped out through the mail.
Silverthorne acting police chief Misty Higby concurred that, while her agency has made fewer marijuana-related arrests since Amendment 64 was passed, the situation is not quite as rosy as it might seem.
"It doesn't mean there haven't been other problems," she said, adding the department has occasionally seen issues with individuals purchasing cannabis and then giving it to others illegally. She added the department has also addressed minors in possession of marijuana without medical documentation.
"I'm not sure if that has changed since legalization," she said.
News Moderator: Robert Celt 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Colorado Marijuana Report Shows More Revenue, Fewer Arrests Since Legalization
Author: Elise Reuter
Photo Credit: Elise Reuter
Website: Summit Daily
