COLORADO SKI TOWN COULD PUSH MARIJUANA LEGALIZATION

BRECKENRIDGE, Colo. -- Voters in this Rocky Mountain resort town will
decide next week whether to legalize pot for all adults at a time when
the movement to allow medical marijuana is gaining steam around the
country.

A measure before Breckenridge voters in Tuesday's municipal election
would legalize possession of up to 1 ounce of marijuana along with
bongs, pipes and other pot paraphernalia. Supporters of the measure
say it would inch the whole state closer to full legalization.

Other cities around the country have taken similar action in recent
years, including a measure in Denver that decriminalized possession.

Local ordinances to allow some recreational marijuana use have passed
in Seattle, San Francisco and other cities, though in all those places
the law is considered symbolic because it conflicts with state and
federal laws. Alaska allows possession of up to 4 ounces of marijuana
in one's home, and advocates in California want to ask voters in next
year's election to legalize pot.

Advocates say the Breckenridge proposal goes further than others
because it allows paraphernalia as well. "I don't think there's
anywhere else in the country that has legalized paraphernalia," said
Bruce Mirken, a spokesman for the Washington-based Marijuana Policy
Project.

As in most states, drug paraphernalia possession in Colorado is
considered a petty offense. Though "head shops" selling bongs and
pipes are common in Colorado, the wares are ostensibly for smoking
tobacco. Paraphernalia charges are usually only filed along with
possession charges. Both are misdemeanors punishable by a $100 fine
and court fees.

The penalties aren't serious, but about 100 people a year in
Breckenridge are cited for possession of either marijuana or
paraphernalia, often both. Supporters of the effort say it's not right
to leave small-time pot smokers with a criminal record.

"We don't want to spend our tax dollars prosecuting this, so we're
saying, let's just stop it," said Sean McAllister, a Breckenridge
attorney who proposed the ordinance. Supporters include a member of
the town council and the Summit Daily News, which printed an editorial
backing the idea.

Its prospects are strong. In 2006, a statewide ballot measure to make
marijuana possession legal failed 59 percent to 41 percent. But among
Breckenridge voters it won almost 3-to-1.

McAllister's attempt to put the legalization measure on ballots needed
495 signatures. He collected more than 1,500.

Breckenridge Police Chief Rick Holman has opposed the idea, saying the
measure just sets up a conflict between town and state law. Pot
possession would still be a state crime, but Breckenridge police
officers would have to take users to the Summit County Sheriff's
Department to be cited if the measure passes.

Critics also point out that Colorado already allows marijuana for
medicinal use - though debate rages because pot shops aren't regulated
by the state and are proliferating.

More than 10,000 people in Colorado are cleared to use medical
marijuana, and more than 100 dispensaries have opened.

This week, Summit County imposed a 120-day moratorium on new medical
marijuana dispensaries in unincorporated areas so it can figure out
how to regulate them. Six other Colorado counties and towns are
considering or have moratoriums for that reason.

The debate is playing out around the country as states struggle to
figure out how to regulate and enforce medical marijuana laws. The
federal government complicated matters earlier this month when the
Justice Department told federal prosecutors that targeting medical
marijuana users who comply with state laws was not a good use of their
time.

Several Breckenridge residents heartily backed the local marijuana
effort.

"People think it's a waste of time for the police to be prosecuting
these people," said Elisabeth Lawrence, 30. Smoking pot, she said, is
"not the worst thing in the world to be doing."

Nancy Skaj, a clerk at a Breckenridge grocery store, said the measure
could be a boon for ski tourists who don't have clearance for medical
marijuana. "With all the injuries people get skiing up here, instead
of popping pills, they should just be doing this. It's a lot more
natural," she said.

Backers have one main worry - the measure's timing.

Turnout for off-year municipal elections is often extremely light
among Breckenridge's 3,300 or so voters. Election Day falls during the
quiet weeks before the ski business picks up.

McAllister, who has two interns waving signs and passing out flyers in
support of the measure, says he's confident the effort will send at
least a message about what he calls the public's changing attitude
toward marijuana.

"Prohibition ended by localities and states saying they didn't want it
anymore. And that's exactly how marijuana prohibition is going to end
- - from the ground up," he said.