Sunday, August 19, 2012

Seattle Hempfest Organizers Question Marijuana Legalization Initiative

A measure to legalize marijuana would seem just the thing to bliss out the tie-dyed, dreadlocked crowd gathered in Seattle's Myrtle Edwards Park this weekend, but Hempfest organizers and attendees say they're not ready to support the initiative that's on the November ballot. - ABC News

In a surprise move to outsiders, Hempfest, its director and its lawyer have not come out in support of the initiative. They say it's not a true legalization effort and that it has quite a few "poison pills," Hempfest lawyer Douglass Hiatt told ABCNews.com.

"The mood at Hempfest this year is contentious," Hiatt said. "There's no doubt about it. ... There are a lot of people there that are fighting about whether to support 502 or not, and it's really torn the community up."

According to the "Intent" portion of the measure, it "takes marijuana out of the hands of illegal drug organizations and brings it under a tightly regulated, state-licensed system similar to that for controlling hard alcohol."

But the initiative's driving-under-the-influence provisions have drawn criticism because it includes a zero THC tolerance for drivers under 21. People are also upset that they won't be allowed to grow their own marijuana for recreational use, according to ABC affiliate KOMO-TV in Seattle.