Colorado Springs Mayor urges Arizonans not to legalize Marijuana

Posted by Sagar Satapathy on September 23, 2016.

The mayor of Colorado's second-largest city has urged Arizonans not to legalize marijuana for recreational use while visiting Arizona this week to denounce Proposition 205 on behalf of the opposition group Arizonans for Responsible Drug Policy.

At a news conference on Tuesday, Colorado Springs Mayor John Suthers along with officials including ARDP's co-chair, Yavapai County Attorney Sheila Polk, spoke against Arizona’s Prop 205, which would allow the recreational use of marijuana within certain limits.

Suthers pointed out a list of problems that Colorado has experienced since recreational marijuana was legalized in 2012, including alleged rise in kids using marijuana, increasing criminal activities, more homeless people so on and so forth. The legalization would make it difficult to prosecute marijuana-impaired drivers and would spur organized crime, he said.

 “The problem with the leap to legalization is the message it sends to young people in terms of their perception of risk,” Suthers said. “That’s what’s caused the dramatic increase in youth use in Colorado.”

Suthers admitted, though, that teen use of marijuana in Colorado has not risen since recreational use became legal after the 2012 vote. But he sated that's because the sharp increase came years before when Colorado legalized medical marijuana, what Arizona already has made.

The Republican leader also urged that Arizona voters should wait until the Colorado law has been in effect for five full years to see whether they still believe recreational use of marijuana is desirable.

The proposition 205, which will appear on November's ballot, would legalize anyone 21 and older to possess and use up to an ounce of marijuana as well as grow their own plants. It would also make possession of marijuana between one and 2.5 ounces a non-arrestable petty offense with a $300 fine. However, the measure would still be illegal under the federal law of the United States.

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