A Proven Criminal Defense Team

New Denver regulation unfair to businesses

On Behalf of | Dec 2, 2016 | Drug Possession |

For those in Denver who choose to partake in recreational marijuana, the matter is still not as simple as “it’s legal, you can smoke wherever you want.” Of course, other substances such as tobacco and alcohol face similar restrictions, too. Despite the passage of Initiative 300, smoking marijuana is legal, but there are still some ways to run afoul of the law with it.

Local authorities pushed back against the new law that allows smoking indoors and in certain outdoor areas. They recently passed a new regulation prohibiting restaurants, bars, and other venues with liquor licenses from permitting marijuana smoking on their premises. This is a harsh blow to many of the businesses that would have benefited from the four-year program to test the waters by allowing businesses to apply for marijuana consumption permits.

For customers, this presents a frustrating choice — either choose to not smoke marijuana while dining out in one of the few world-class cities where it’s legal, or only go to restaurants and other establishments that do not serve liquor. This measure was pushed through the local system on the merits of “concerns about about the public dual consumption of marijuana and alcohol,” which seems like above-average pearl-clutching. Still, patrons who choose to flout the law may face ticketing, or may bring the ire of the law onto their favorite restaurant or bar. It remains to be seen how long this law will stand, or how strictly it will be enforced.

Freedom, as always, is taken a step at a time, and sometimes not always in a straight line. If you are facing drug possession charges, or any drug charge, you owe it to yourself to fight these charges with the representation of an experienced attorney.

Source: IB Times, “Marijuana Laws In Colorado 2016: After Initiative 300 Passes, Can Denver Smokers Smoke Pot In Bars?,” Janice Williams, Nov. 22, 2016

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