Smoking marijuana in Colorado is now legal after the 2012 Election. But where you can smoke marijuana has been debated ever since marijuana became legal in Colorado, especially in Denver. The Denver City Council was proposing that the odor from marijuana consumption would be illegal, even if it came from one’s own property.
That would have been a nightmare for recreational marijuana users and medical marijuana users alike. If such a rule had been passed, a person could have been smoking in the privacy of their own home behind locked doors and if someone could smell it, it would have resulted in penalties. That would have been a very subjective measurement, as some people can smell better than others, and some people tolerate certain smells more than others.
It looks like according to the new proposal in Denver, smoking marijuana on one’s own property is legal, even in the front yard. A person can also smoke marijuana on other people’s property, so long as they have permission. The general odor enforcement laws will still apply, but as I stated in an article yesterday, a fine for that hasn’t been handed out since 1994. To read more about that story, click here.
The private property consumption rules could change if public view consumption becomes a problem. Per the Denver Post:
“I am guessing problems of people smoking marijuana in their front yards will turn out to be no problem at all,” he said. “It could be an enormous problem. In which case, we will come back and fix it. I would hate to make this more convoluted and ambiguous in anticipation of a future reality that hasn’t occurred yet.”
