Pot Arrests Up Despite Initiative

Citations and arrests for minor possession of marijuana continue to rise in Denver, even though voters have passed two initiatives to reduce such enforcement, a group says.

"More and more people want the police and prosecutors to stop, but they're citing and prosecuting more and more people," said Mason Tvert, executive director of Safer Alternative for Enjoyable Recreation.

Tvert said that statistics he obtained from the Denver police's civil liability bureau show that the number of misdemeanor marijuana arrests has increased by almost 18 percent from 2006 to 2007.

Tvert said that arrests of adults age 22 and older were: 1,059 in 2004; 1,168 in 2005; 1,347 in 2006; and 1,587 in 2007.

If last year's figures are compared with those of 2005, the numbers show a 36 percent jump, he said. Compared with 2004, there has been a 50 percent increase, he said.

Rocky Mountain News