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Marijuana arrests down — but Black Coloradans still twice as likely to get busted for pot, report says

Biennial report on Colorado cannabis spotlights public safety, health, driving and youth consumption
Marijuana
Posted at 11:11 AM, Jul 20, 2021
and last updated 2021-07-20 13:11:28-04

Seven years after the first recreational pot shops opened for business in Colorado, youth aren’t smoking more weed, older adults are blazing more and marijuana-related arrests are way down — but Black Coloradans are still much more likely to get in trouble for cannabis offenses, according to a state report released Monday.

The biennial report — “Impacts on Marijuana Legalization in Colorado,” commissioned by the Colorado Division of Criminal Justice — is the most extensive look since 2018 at marijuana’s impact across public safety, health, driving and youth consumption.

Overall, the authors highlight a few notable trends in the way cannabis is being consumed in Colorado: People are moving away from smoking and instead are consuming cannabis through vapes and edibles at higher rates.

The age bracket of those who use pot also has shifted immensely since legalization, with individuals over 65 using marijuana at triple the rate they did in 2014.

It’s no surprise that the baby boomer generation is coming around to cannabis, said Truman Bradley executive director of the Marijuana Industry Group.

Read the full story in The Denver Post.