DRIVER: PRO-POT STICKER LED TO TICKET FROM OFFENDED COP

AURORA - The rear window of Paul Wansing's Ford pickup truck is
decorated with an array of political stickers, including one with the
message: "Legalize Marijuana - Just say know more."

Wansing claims that's the reason he was pulled over by an Aurora
police officer who he says told him he was "offended" by the sticker
then cited him for a cracked windshield.

On Friday, two days after the traffic stop, Wansing stood with members
of the pro-pot group SAFER outside Aurora's municipal building.

"In my eyes, this is a violation of freedom of speech," said the
26-year-old Aurora chef. "My mission is to let people know that rights
are being violated by certain members of law enforcement."

Mason Tvert, a founder of SAFER, which persuaded Denver voters in
November to legalize possession by adults of small amounts of
marijuana, said "anti-marijuana madness has got to end."

"The demonization of marijuana in this country is apparently so out of
hand that police officers feel it appropriate to pull someone over for
simply suggesting that marijuana should be legal," he said.

Police said it was the number of stickers on the truck window that
caught the attention of the officer, who then noticed the crack as
well.

In addition, Wansing was cited for having a softball-size air
freshener dangling from his rearview mirror, which police say could
obstruct his view.

The officer told Wansing he was offended, but by a sticker that
included an obscenity as part of its message and not the one
advocating marijuana legalization, said Aurora police spokesman Sgt.
Rudy Herrera.

Wansing, however, sticks by his version of the story and says he has
contacted attorneys. But he will pay the ticket, he said, because "I'm
a law-abiding citizen."