First of all, the basic rules of legalized recreational marijuana drug use are:
• Coloradans can only own or buy 1 ounce of marijuana at a time.
• Smoking, vaporizing or consuming cannabis in public places (ie Red Rocks; Coors Field; 16th Street Mall; parking lots or airports) is absolutely prohibited.
• Driving under the influence of marijuana is illegal.
So can everyone in Coloradans use marijuana for pleasure now?
Correct, up to a point. All legal Colorado residents over the age of 21 may possess, use, display, purchase, or transport 1 ounce (nearly 60 joints) or less of marijuana for recreational use. However, several cities and counties have passed their own amendments to make things like marijuana grow facilities or marijuana shops illegal (here are Colorado Springs, Westminster, and Centennial! Similarly, your employer has the right to create your own policies regarding the use of marijuana among employees, including in the privacy of their own homes.
Since marijuana is legal in Colorado, drug-related misdemeanors aren’t that big anymore, right?
This is a common mistake. The federal government still considers marijuana illegal, which means that any evidence that you participated in or purchased the drug could affect your federal student loans, certain jobs, and social benefits like food stamps or public housing. Also, drug-related crimes will always show up on your background check.
I’m 21 years old; Could I share my weed with my 18 year old brother?
No way. You may not supply marijuana to anyone under the age of 21, even if it is for free and not in exchange for monetary compensation. Additionally, the zero tolerance law means that people under the age of 21 face automatic loss of their license if caught driving under the influence of marijuana.
Can I resell the herb that I legally purchased?
No. However, you can gift someone over 21 years of age up to 1 ounce of marijuana, as long as there is no money exchange involved.
If my college roommate visits me from Alabama, do all these laws apply to him, too?
Only if you have a government issued Colorado ID. Non-residents can purchase up to ¼ ounce of marijuana per transaction, while they can own a full ounce at a time. Essentially, your friend could make four different purchases in one day, but that’s a gray problem where the consequences – or lack thereof – just aren’t explicit so far.
Is there a legal limit to the amount of marijuana I can have in my system and keep driving?
The legal limit is 5 nanograms or less of delta 9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC, the active ingredient in marijuana) per milliliter in whole blood. This is not a great measure because different strains of marijuana have different THC strengths; Furthermore, people metabolize the drug at much more diverse rates than alcohol. For this reason, you will probably never see a chart that tells you how many joints or brownies are too many to get behind the wheel.
How is the amount of marijuana in my body analyzed?
If they have a justifiable reason, law enforcement officials who suspect drugged driving will request a blood draw. However, as this Westword article points out, these blood tests are yet to be refined and can be quite inaccurate. In this case, the reporter’s blood test showed that he was heavily drugged hours after he last smoked. Other experts believe that people develop tolerance to the drug and can still be sober at 5 nanograms. I urge you to consider declining the blood test if the situation arises. If you do the test, be sure to get one of the blood samples to independently reinforce the results later.
You mean I won’t have to pee in a cup?
A urine test is worthless when it comes to marijuana because traces of the drug can show up in your system long after you are sober. A blood test is the only accurate indicator of active THC at this time.
How long do the authorities have to perform the blood test?
With alcohol, they must prove that a person’s BAC (blood alcohol content) is 0.08 percent or more within two hours of driving. They have not yet issued a definite time frame for drug testing, but rest assured it will be “reasonable.”
Will I lose my license if I refuse the blood test?
Possibly. As with DUIs, you could lose your license for a year if you refuse to take the blood test. However, unlike driving while intoxicated, there will be no administrative penalties on your record; This is important because the use of marijuana is still prohibited at the federal level. However, remember that you can always politely refuse to take the standardized field sobriety tests (walking in a straight line, reciting the alphabet backwards, etc.) without penalty.
Why should I refuse to take a standardized field sobriety test?
In summary, there are special tests designed to evaluate drug intoxication and not all police officers are yet trained in them. Law enforcement officials with no education in marijuana recognition will certainly not help your case, as they do not have the resources to make an accurate judgment about your sobriety.
Wait, will they arrest me if I have marijuana traces on my body?
No, the mere presence of cannabis in your blood is not reason enough to arrest you. Also, having 5 nanograms or more of marijuana in your system is also not enough to automatically convict you of a DUID; if you had a BAC of 0.08 percent or more, on the other hand, you would automatically be charged with drunk driving.
Everyone says that marijuana is safer than alcohol; What is the danger of drugged driving?
Studies show that marijuana use affects spatial perceptions, which means that drugged drivers have slower reaction times and tend to swerve or pass behind other vehicles more frequently. Think of those classic stoner movie scenes where guys are absolutely mesmerized by the size of their hands; Do you want to be driven on I-25?
I am a consumer of medical marijuana; Does this make me an easy target for DUID checks?
Should not. Under a Colorado bill, a person’s medical marijuana status (that is, a valid medical marijuana registration ID) cannot be used as evidence of impairment or probable cause for a blood test.
Can I at least drive with marijuana products?
As with alcohol, it is illegal to drive with an open marijuana container; doing so will result in a traffic violation that will show up at federal checkpoints (as I explained above). The law applies to anything containing marijuana that is open or has a broken seal, or whose contents have been partially removed. The best advice I can offer at this point is to keep it as far out of reach as possible. In fact, put it in the trunk.
My car doesn’t have a trunk.
Okay, as with all rules, there are certain exceptions. If you drive a pickup or pickup truck, you can keep the marijuana unsealed behind the last row of upright seats. Open marijuana is also allowed in trailer or mobile home homes.
Can I smoke / use marijuana in the car if I am not the driver?
No. People in the passenger area of a vehicle cannot use or consume marijuana, and the no open container law applies to them as well. While we’re at it, you can’t smoke marijuana in a taxi or on public transportation either. However, you can smoke marijuana if you are in the back of a private rental car.
As long as I buy marijuana legally in Colorado, can I take it to other states?
Absolutely not, not even to Washington. First of all, keep in mind that the TSA is a federal institution and that marijuana is prohibited at all airports, including the DIA. You can’t fly with the drug and, in fact, you can’t even leave marijuana in your car at the airport; that would be considered illegal possession and would impose a hefty fine. Second, our neighboring states are cracking down on those who enter their borders with grass purchased in Colorado. Wyoming, for example, won’t even recognize a Colorado-issued medical marijuana card and will make arrests for illegal possession as a result.
Where can I get more information about Colorado marijuana policies?
DUI Defense Matters will make every effort to update our own website in a timely manner, but we recommend checking The Cannabist, Colorado NORML, and Marijuana Info Denver (only applies to the city of Denver, obviously) for extended coverage on this topic.
