Legal pot means big changes for Washington's drug-sniffing dogs

KATU.com ^

[Daffynition]

SEATTLE -- The passage of I-502 made things difficult enough for the humans tasked with creating and enforcing the laws for legal marijuana. Now, try explaining the difference between "personal use" and "intent to sell" or the gray area between state and federal law to a dog.

That's why many law-enforcement agencies around the state, including the Seattle Police Department and Washington State Patrol, will no longer be training their drug-sniffing dogs to alert for marijuana.

“Moving forward, it makes most sense not to train dogs to alert to marijuana as that would likely lead to unwarranted investigatory detentions of people who are not breaking any law," said Alison Holcomb, author of I-502 and drug policy director for the American Civil Liberties Union.

The Washington Association of Prosecuting Attorneys sent out a memo advising the state's law-enforcement agencies that narcotics dogs are no longer required to be trained to alert for marijuana in December. And, marijuana was removed from the Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission's Canine Performance Standards test in January.

[JustSayNoToNannies]

And if the weed is more potent, one will smoke less to get the desired effect - just as a beer drinker who switches to liquor lowers his volume consumption.

You describe normal users and drinkers.

I'm pleased to see you note the existence of normal users. Too many on FR seem to think ALL pot users are filthy Occupy derelicts.

Trouble is, many are addicted to alcohol and other drugs and would not lower volume of consumption.

Maybe not - but preventing addicts from getting even more thoroughly wasted than they already do is not even close to worth perpetuating the War on Marijuana's hyperinflating marijuana profits and channeling those profits into criminal hands.

I have no problem with people using any of this stuff...

Good to hear. It's none of my business nor yours if they do.

I do have a problem with people getting hooked

Which increased potency will in no way encourage.

[JustSayNoToNannies]

AT this point, no one seems to know enough about anything.

The genius of the free market will provide the answers.

How can it possibly turn out well?

Free market solutions invariably turn out better than centralized planning.

[Veto!]

Hope you are right about free market solutions working well. I live in a newly legalized marijuana state....hoping for the best. Dreading the worst.

[Wolfie]

Just because it’s legal doesn’t mean that you should be forced to breath that crap.

Amen. That's why I love the public (cigarette) smoking bans.