Boulder DA to Advise Trump on Cannabis

Photo by Gage Skidmore

San Garnett, Boulder District Attorney, is one of the prosecutors selected for Donald Trump’s cannabis advisory group.

According to the Daily Camera, the National District Attorney’s Association has created a special sub-section made up of 14 DAs who will advise on law and policy change during the nation’s transition to legalization and more sensible cannabis policies.

Garnett is considered liberal on issues relating to cannabis, and some of the other DAs involved are from states like Oregon and California that favor legalization. However, the group is overall comprised of conservatives.

“I always end up on the more liberal position than anyone else, particularly on marijuana,” Garnett told the Camera. “I think one of the things that happens is that many of the people in states where there is no legalization have a complete misunderstanding of states like Colorado. If nothing else, I’m able to say, ‘Wait a minute, this is a huge business in Colorado, it is largely supported by the editorial boards, polls show it was being very popular, and by and large we have not seen an impact on crime rates.’ For somebody from Missouri or South Carolina to tell Colorado how to handle an issue of its own choice like legalization of marijuana is not only bad policy, but it fails to respect the importance of local control and state rights.”

While Trump’s moves have so far sparked outrage and indignation among liberals and even some conservatives, hopeful cannabis enthusiasts are still waiting to see if he will keep his campaign promises and go easy on cannabis because of the money it can bring in and his loyalty to business and industry. The appointment of a liberal Boulder DA to his advisory council seems like a positive sign, but the conservative nature of many of his appointees still leaves his stance on cannabis ambiguous.