ARIZONA POLICE CAN DO LITTLE TO PREPARE FOR STATE'S NEW POT LAW

With state health officials still designing rules to regulate the
cultivation, distribution and possession of medical marijuana, police
departments in Arizona say there is little they can do to prepare to
enforce the law until those guidelines are complete.

Until then, police officials are working with local governments to
craft zoning laws that prevent clusters of marijuana dispensaries
from popping up in the same areas, and they are taking other measured
steps to ensure that Arizona does not repeat mistakes other states
have made in regulating medical marijuana.

Beyond researching the experiences of other states, Arizona
law-enforcement agencies are largely silent about what one of the
biggest changes in the history of the state's drug laws will mean to
officers who have spent careers presuming that anyone smoking pot is
breaking the law.

"It's going to be a cultural shift for them to understand the
difference between the criminal possession of marijuana and the
approved medicinal possession," Tucson police Capt. Mike Gillooly
said. "They'll have to work through that training we provide them to
make that distinction between the two."

There was an inherent prejudice among Colorado law officers about
marijuana when that state first legalized medical marijuana in 2000,
said Brian Vicente, a Colorado attorney and executive director of
Sensible Colorado, an advocacy organization for medical-marijuana
patients. Police often confiscated marijuana and charged legitimate
medical-marijuana cardholders, Vicente said.

Kostas Kalaitzidis, a Pinal county attorney's spokesman, said while
the new law allows certain legal uses, it does not give carte blanche
to illicit marijuana users.

"This new law will allow people to transport or possess small amounts
of marijuana based on a permit, but really, that does not really stop
us from prosecuting marijuana-related crimes," Kalaitzidis said.
"That is an important distinction."

For police and prosecutors in Arizona, the new concept of approved
use initially will be put to the test in two areas:

Drugged Driving

. What the act says: As with prescription drugs, drivers can be
charged with driving under the influence if it is determined that
they are impaired. Drivers who have marijuana metabolites in their
blood may not be charged with DUI if an officer cannot prove they are impaired.

. What law enforcement says: Some police fear that marijuana
cardholders will treat marijuana like drivers treat other
prescription drugs. "(Driving under the influence) is going to be OK
in the eyes of society because they were (recommended) marijuana,"
said Sgt. Paul White, a drug-recognition expert with the Maricopa
County Sheriff's Office.

. What attorneys say: "A medical-marijuana card just cannot be
mistaken for a get-out-of-jail-free card. It's not an excuse to break
the law," said Jordan Rose, whose Scottsdale law firm has represented
businesses and non-profits that want to participate in the
medical-marijuana program.

Rose said the Legislature should determine a standard measurement for
marijuana impairment. Colorado lawmakers plan to introduce a similar
bill early next year.

Possession

. What the act says: The Arizona Medical Marijuana Act permits
licensed physicians to recommend medical marijuana for patients with
debilitating medical conditions, including cancer, glaucoma,
HIV/AIDS, hepatitis C and Alzheimer's disease. The act shields
medical-marijuana patients from arrest for possessing marijuana, as
long as they do not have more than the 2 1/2 ounces. It also protects
caregivers as long as they do not have more than the allowed amount
for up to five qualifying patients.

. What law enforcement says: "If they are (recommended) medical
marijuana, they're not going to suffer any consequences," White said.
"I think the most concerning thing for law enforcement is going to be
the caregivers. They're going to be the ones working with multiple
patients." They will possess medical marijuana for each patient,
White noted, meaning "we're going to have legal dope dealers."

. What attorneys say: Law enforcement should treat medical-marijuana
possession the same way as prescription medication, said Jamal Allen,
a marijuana defense attorney in Chandler. Patients should not be
charged if they have no more than the allowed amount and they have a
valid medical-marijuana card, he said.

The Arizona Department of Health Services' computer system will track
how much marijuana each patient has purchased in a two-week period.
Dispensaries and law enforcement will be allowed to access the
system. If patients have more than 2 1/2 ounces of marijuana on them,
patients and the dispensaries they purchased the marijuana from will
face charges, Rose said.

Whether police are working through possession charges, allegations of
driving under the influence or determining if someone is authorized
to grow marijuana on their property, law-enforcement officials say
making those decisions will take time for investigators. With many of
these situations likely falling to street cops instead of detectives,
administrators say the burden could disproportionally fall on
law-enforcement personnel who need to be on patrol instead of working
through the new law's ambiguities.

Police will have just a small window of time to get up to speed: they
must prepare between April, when health officials formalize
regulations, and sometime this summer when dispensaries begin
distributing marijuana.

"It's something obviously we're going to roll out pretty quick,"
Gillooly said of training on the new law. "There are some very
distinct black-and-white issues and some gray areas that provide some
challenges for our officers."