MARIJUANA LEGALIZATION >>>

South Sound Sidekick series offers advice from experts living in the, well, the South Sound. It posts every Friday. Today, The Counselor is back with a breakdown of what you can and can't put in your pipe now that Initiative 502 passed.

"The people intend to stop treating adult marijuana use as a crime and try a new approach. ..." (Intent section of I-502)

Well the good news is that marijuana is now legal in Washington. Bad news?  Many of the old rules still apply and there is and will be for sometime a whole bunch of unanswered questions.

Can I smoke dope in public?  Nope. (Law provides that it is an infraction just like drinking in public to display marijuana in public.)

Can I buy grass?  Nope.  (How are we supposed to get it?  Good question.)

Can I smoke my very fine bud in my own home?  Yes you may.

How much can I possess?  A person over 21 years of age may possess up to one ounce of bud, 16 ounces of solid-form marijuana in food products and 72 ounces of cannabis in liquid form.

Can I grow my own? No you cannot.

The law provides that the state will license and closely regulate the production and distribution of marijuana.  But the law this does not provide for anyone to grow their own.

Can I smoke a big honking doobie while driving?  Bad Idea, first, grass is treated just the same as alcohol; it is an infraction to drink while driving and would be to smoke as well. You are in the motoring public.Got it? Also you will be inviting trouble from the police. You cannot drive under the influence of marijuana. (5 nano-grams per milliliter of blood.) You cannot drive under the influence or be affected by any drug to a degree in which you are impaired. Marijuana remains a drug; it just is legal in some scenarios.

And smoking while driving is an open invitation to the police to at least check you out for the infraction. Then they pull you over and the cop says:

Hey man that smells like good shit.

And you say:  Yeah man it is the best.

You will most likely be having your blood drawn to see if you are under the influence, (probable cause being your own admission that you are high as a kite, likely combined with several visual cues, bloodshot eyes, food spilled all over your shirt, stereo playing full blast). While a Judge in most cases has to authorize a blood draw, the whole thing is and would be a pain in the ass.

So just do yourself a favor and don't smoke and drive. Go home and smoke in your living room.

The new law does not have any affect on the older Medical Marijuana law. None. Not one bit.  Whatever you could or could not do under the medical marijuana law remains unchanged; they are two completely different laws.

Do not go anywhere near a Federal building or Federal Courthouse with your Washington legal dope.  To the Feds it is still illegal and subject at the very least to seizure.  What else the Feds will do remains a question.

There are tons of unanswered questions about what the future of marijuana will be here in Washington. I-502 gives the State until December 2013 to come up with some answers.

"The people intend to stop treating adult marijuana use as a crime and try a new approach".
The voters of Washington have spoken and we should all be proud.

Be intelligent and respectful in your use of marijuana.  Treat it as you would a good scotch. Don't be stupid. And don't go straight. Just go forward.

The Counselor

LINK: Speeding ticket advice

LINK: DUI advice

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