Voters approved an amendment legalizing recreational marijuana use in
Colorado on Tuesday, making this one of two states to end prohibition of the
drug but also raising new legal questions and setting up potential court
battles. The historic result, projected by The Denver Post on Tuesday night, drew
raucous cheers and applause from the amendment's supporters, who gathered in
hundreds at Casselman's in downtown Denver. "We won! We won!" supporters cried as the results were splashed across a
giant screen.
Amendment 64 led late Tuesday night with 53.3 percent voting yes and 46.7
percent voting no, with 1,863,535 votes or about 66 percent of active voters
counted, according to the Colorado Secretary of State's office.
"This is really groundbreaking," said Beau Kilmer, co-director of the Rand
Drug Policy Research Center. "No modern jurisdiction has ever removed the
prohibition on the production and possession of marijuana for recreational
purposes. ... Since no one has done this before, there are a lot of
uncertainties." Voters in Washington state approved a similar measure Tuesday; in Oregon a
legalization issue failed.
The amendment will allow those 21 and older to purchase up to one ounce of
the drug at specially regulated retail stores. Possession would be legal but not
public use. Adults could grow up to six marijuana plants at home. It sets up a
direct challenge to federal drug law, which regulates it as an illegal
substance. Federal authorities have not said how they will respond.
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This will be interesting....
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