"Legalization" of Marijuana in Colorado: The Impact On Kansas

Legalization of Marijuana in Colorado:
The Impact on Kansas
KANSAS ATTORNEY GENERAL

Derek Schmidt
Compiled by
Assistant Solicitor General Dwight Carswell
October 2016
www.ag.ks.gov
Introduction
In recent years, the State of Colorado has moved toward legalizing marijuana under state law,
including enacting a statutory scheme in 2010 for the distribution of medical marijuana and by
further expanding state law in 2012 to allow for the cultivation, sale, possession, and use of
certain amounts of marijuana for recreational purposes. The first stores selling Colorado
marijuana for recreational purposes began operating in January 2014.
The cultivation, sale, possession, and use of marijuana remain a crime under both Kansas and
federal law. However, the United States Department of Justice has issued memoranda directing
federal prosecutors to decline to enforce federal law in most circumstances involving marijuana
offenses that are legal as a matter of state law. See Memorandum from David W. Ogden, Deputy
Attorney General, U.S. Department of Justice, to Selected U.S. Attorneys (Oct. 19, 2009),
revised by Memorandum from James M. Cole, Deputy Attorney General, U.S. Department of
Justice (Aug. 29, 2013). These memoranda leave open the possibility that federal prosecutors
may prosecute marijuana offenses in States like Colorado when a particularly important federal
priority is at stake, including preventing the diversion of marijuana from states where it is legal
under state law in some form to other states.
Numerous anecdotal reports, particularly from areas near the Colorado border, have described an
increase in the amount of Colorado marijuana flowing into Kansas. Unfortunately, Kansass
existing systems for tracking criminal justice information do not readily track this Colorado
marijuana phenomenon. For example, the Kansas Incident Based Reporting System (KIBRS)
generally does not identify the source of marijuana that results in a reported incident.
Therefore, in order to obtain reliable information about the true condition of the crime situation
involving Colorado marijuana in Kansas, the Attorney General exercised his authority under
K.S.A. 21-2504(a) and called upon law enforcement agencies and prosecutors to provide
information regarding Colorado marijuana. Surveys were sent out on December 30, 2015, and
over the following months responses were received from 320 law enforcement agencies and 70
County or District Attorneys.
Summary of Results
The survey responses demonstrate that Colorado marijuana is prevalent in Kansas. While some
jurisdictions reported an increase in overall levels of marijuana crimes, the major effect of
Colorado marijuana legalization appears to be that high grade marijuana from Colorado has to
a large extent replaced lower grade marijuana from Mexico and home grown marijuana.
Numerous jurisdictions also reported a significant rise in the availability of marijuana edibles
and other marijuana products, such as waxes and oils, originating from Colorado.
Kansas Highway Patrol Data

The Kansas Highway Patrol (KHP) responded to the survey request by providing the following
chart with data on KHP marijuana seizures from 2013 through 2015, with the caveat that while
the information concerning the origin of drugs, including marijuana, cannot be considered
definitive and conclusive, the information is based on indicators, clues, statements, trends and
experience:
MARIJUANA SEIZURES
TOTAL MJ SEIZURES
TOTAL MJ WEIGHT lbs
TOTAL EDIBLE SEIZURES
MJ SEIZURES COLORADO ORIGIN
PERCENTAGE MJ COLORADO ORIGIN
TOTAL MJ COLORADO WEIGHT lbs
PERCENTAGE MJ WEIGHT COLORADO ORIGIN
TOTAL EDIBLES COLORADO ORIGIN
TOTAL EDIBLES COLORADO WEIGHT lbs
PERCENTAGE EDIBLES COLORADO ORIGIN
TOTAL MJ SEIZURES KANSAS DESTINATION
PERCENTAGE MJ SEIZURES KANSAS DESTINATION
TOTAL EDIBLES KANSAS DESTINATION
PERCENTAGE EDIBLES KANSAS DESTINATION
2013 2014
243
6187
0
127
52%
1119
18%
**
**
**
15
12%
**
**
247
3498
25
143
58%
1846
53%
21
47
84%
33
23%
4
19.00%
2015
216
3769
32
150
69%
1812
48%
30
56
94%
9
6%
6
20.00%
** Statistics are Reliable but Not Guaranteed**
This chart demonstrates that while the total number of KHP marijuana seizures remained roughly
the same since Colorados legalization of recreational marijuana in January 2014, the
percentage of seizures involving marijuana believed to have originated in Colorado has risen
steadily to account for roughly 70% of KHP marijuana seizures in 2015. By weight, suspected
Colorado marijuana accounted for roughly 50% of marijuana seized by the KHP in 2014 and
2015, up from 18% in 2013.
Notably, the number of seizures of marijuana edibles has dramatically increased. While there
were no reported KHP seizures of marijuana edibles in 2013, there were 25 edibles seizures in
2014 and 32 in 2015. The seized edibles were believed to have overwhelmingly come from
Colorado. As an example, in a single seizure in January of 2015, a KHP Trooper seized 17
pounds of THC laced edibles suspected to have come from Colorado including:
22 1 gram containers of Shatter Hash

7 bottles of Star Barz THC chocolates
6 containers of Loves Oven THC candies
2
8 packages of Full Melt THC chocolate bars

1 package of THC hard candy
11 Flying Aces THC chocolate bars
7 containers of Puckers hard THC candies
4 bottles of Edipure mixed THC candy drops
4 bottles of Edipure THC jellybeans
6 bottles of Insta High THC powder mix
5 bottles of Marijuana Bud
36 THC chocolate bars
2 bottles of Peanut Brittle THC bites
2 boxes of THC Awakening mints
2 containers of THC lemon drops
4 vapor pens
KHP has also seized marijuana waxes and other marijuana products.
Although the chart provided by KHP only contains data through 2015, reports of significant
KHP interdiction seizures demonstrate that the trend is continuing into 2016. In the first six
months of 2016, KHP conducted 102 significant seizures of marijuana believed to have an origin
of Colorado and seized over 1,259 pounds of marijuana during those incidents. Because the
available KHP reports only track significant seizures and not seizures involving smaller amounts,
the total number of seizures of suspected Colorado marijuana is likely much higher. If seizures
continue at this rate for the second half of 2016, the amount of suspected Colorado marijuana
seized in 2016 will significantly exceed the amount seized in previous years.
KHP has also seized large amounts of marijuana-related cash headed to Colorado. In June 2016
alone, KHP conducted six seizures of cash with a Colorado destination. Five of those seizures
involved amounts over $10,000, including one seizure of $81,000. KHP also sometimes finds
and seizes firearms related to suspected Colorado marijuana trafficking.
Overall, the KHP data suggests that large amounts of Colorado marijuana are flowing into and
through Kansas, with Colorado being by far the number one suspected source of marijuana
seized by KHP.
Other Law Enforcement Survey Responses
Law enforcement agencies other than KHP provided varied responses on the number of seizures
and arrests involving Colorado marijuana. In part, this appears to be due to difficulty in
conclusively identifying the source of marijuana. For example, while the Dodge City Police
Department was only able to report one confirmed case of Colorado marijuana, the best guess of
its narcotics detectives is that approximately 90% of all marijuana seized in Dodge City comes
from Colorado. The Topeka Police Department provided a similar response, reporting only seven
confirmed cases but explaining that most of our high grade marijuana is coming from the State
of Colorado. Likewise, the Lenexa Police Department, which listed seven confirmed cases of
Colorado marijuana, wrote:
3
While these are just several documented cases, we are confident that the vast
majority of the marijuana we are seizing is from Colorado. While our reporting
system doesnt have any sort of tracking mechanism, our officers are reporting
that their arrestees are frequently admitting their marijuana is from Colorado.
Furthermore, since the Colorado law change in 2014 we are consistently seeing
higher grade marijuana. Prior to 2014, it was somewhat uncommon to find a lot of
high grade marijuana. We know from training and experience that the Colorado
marijuana farms can create a marijuana bud with a much higher THC content,
which is preferred by the users.
The high quality of Colorado marijuana was frequently mentioned by survey respondents. For
example, the Augusta Department of Public Safety reported:
[O]fficers commonly note that the overall quality of marijuana seized has
increased markedly from that we have seen in past years. There was a period of
time early last summer when almost every case appeared to be of this quality. The
timing of the quality change correlates to the legalization of marijuana in
Colorado for recreational use.
High grade marijuana from Colorado appears to have largely replaced marijuana from other
sources. The Garden City Police Department, which reported 552 marijuana arrests in 2014 and
2015, explained:
Prior to the influx of Colorado marijuana, virtually all of the marijuana seized in
our jurisdiction was compressed marijuana referred to by locals as reggie with
Mexican origins. This type of marijuana is rarely seen any longer in our
jurisdiction and virtually all the marijuana seen here are from Colorado either
legally from dispensaries or underground black market sources. From multiple
interviews with persons arrested with marijuana, I have learned that few users
desire reggie marijuana as Colorado marijuana is much more potent. One user
in particular described how he could get a better and longer high from one
cigarette of Colorado marijuana than from an entire quarter sack (7 grams) of
reggie. In the past two years, I have not heard of any marijuana suppliers
obtaining marijuana from any other sources other than what originated in
Colorado.
Homegrown marijuana also appears to have been widely supplanted by Colorado marijuana. As
the WaKeeney Police Department observed, [p]eople just dont want to grow their own
[marijuana] when they can drive to Colorado and purchase much stronger marijuana, edibles and
concentrates.
The replacement of homegrown and Mexican marijuana with high grade Colorado marijuana has
had several apparent effects. According to the Garden City Police Department, distributing
Colorado marijuana is easier and can be very profitable:
A legal purchase of marijuana from a dispensary in Colorado can be obtained for

as little as $100. Selling it by the gram in Garden City for $20 each, a dealer can
profit around $460 for each ounce. Prior to the easy accessibility in Colorado,
dealers would have to have a connect in the black market to obtain marijuana
from Mexican origin sources thus the numbers of distributors were not nearly as
high as they are now.
The amount of money involved in Colorado marijuana distribution also appears to be fueling
violence. As the Shawnee County Sheriffs Office explained:
The THC content being higher brings more money to the drug dealer, in turn
brings violence. . . . Our Drug Enforcement Unit has really seen a spike in
subjects selling marijuana in Shawnee County due to the higher cost of it which in
turn the dealer can make a larger profit. Subjects that we interview will tell us that
the Colorado marijuana gets them higher than the Mexican marijuana. The
Shawnee County Sheriff Office worked a homicide where the victim was selling
large amounts of marijuana. The victims wife and two kids were in the house
when the suspects entered the residence, shot and killed the drug dealer.
Numerous pounds of marijuana and thousands of dollars in currency were
discovered in the residence during the service of a search warrant at the homicide
scene.
The Franklin County Sheriffs Office reported that the higher cost of Colorado marijuana is also
driving up the burglary, thefts and financial crimes due to users trying to afford it.
While the law enforcement survey did not specifically ask about asset forfeiture, several
jurisdictions reported large amounts of money headed to Colorado. The Wichita Police
Department, for instance, reported seizing $294,700 in cash destined for Colorado, and in one
case they missed seizing over $680,000 which had already been sent.
Although some jurisdictions reported they had not seen Colorado marijuana due to their distance
from Colorado, the presence of Colorado marijuana does not appear to be limited to western
Kansas. As noted above, both the Topeka and Lenexa Police Departments reported that most of
the marijuana they see is believed to come from Colorado. And in southeast Kansas, the
Cherokee County Sheriffs Office reported three cases involving Colorado marijuana, including
one involving a 15 pounds shipment of marijuana from Colorado to Cherokee County and
another where a local resident had a medical marijuana card and was frequently traveling to
Colorado to obtain marijuana. The Cherokee County Sheriffs Office wrote that these cases are
evidence that [Colorado marijuana] is not just an issue impacting western Kansas sheriffs, but is
growing statewide.
The following map depicts in green those counties where a survey respondent reported the
presence of Colorado marijuana (the counties in white either did not respond to the survey or
reported no verifiable Colorado marijuana):
A few jurisdictions reported arrests for driving under the influence of Colorado marijuana. The
Cloud County Sheriffs Office, for example, reported a rising number of traffic stops where
people are ingesting marijuana while traveling through our area. It is not always a large amount
however after talking to the suspects, it is indicated that it originates from Colorado. The
WaKeeney Police Department estimated that in approximately 90% of the marijuana arrests at a
24/7 truck stop off I-70, the motorist admitted to smoking or consuming marijuana while leaving
Colorado. And the Lyons Police Department reported that a woman with various marijuana
candies from Colorado hit a gas pump while under the influence of meth and marijuana.
The survey responses indicate that marijuana edibles from Colorado are present in numerous
jurisdictions. These edibles come in a wide variety of forms, including chocolates, cookies,
brownies, gummy bears and gummy worms, snack bars, lollipops, and other candies. The
proliferation of marijuana edibles raises concerns about possible unintentional consumption of
marijuana and overdoses by individuals who are unaware of the edibles THC content.
Law enforcement agencies also reported the presence of other marijuana products, such as waxes
and oils, coming from Colorado. According to the Douglas County Sheriffs Office:
Marijuana wax is popular right now for several reasons. Its easy to conceal and
easy to use. Often times this is what is being used by the College, High School
and Middle School kids. Additionally, this is very common with E-Cigs and is
being smoked in public where unknowing citizens are being subjected to the use.
The McPherson County Sheriffs Office stated that they are [c]ontinuously seizing THC Wax
and E-Cig canisters containing Cannabis and THC.
The use of marijuana edibles and other marijuana products by juveniles is an area of concern.
The Augusta Department of Public Safety explained that these products are particularly
appealing to young people: Instead of a stinky hand rolled cigarette they now can simply
smoke cherry flavored water vapor, eat a gummy worm, or a bowl of cereal. Several agencies
reported that these products have been found in the possession of juveniles. The Emporia Police
Department, for example, reported at least eight to ten cases in the local middle and high schools
involving flavored marijuana fluids and vapor cigarettes.
Prosecutor Survey Responses
The survey responses of County and District Attorneys were mixed. Many prosecutors reported
that the effect of Colorado marijuana legalization was minimal to nonexistent in their
jurisdiction. For instance, the Hamilton County Attorney reported:
Since I serve in Hamilton County, which borders Colorado, I expected a
significant increase in marijuana cases as a result of legalization in Colorado.
Surprisingly, this is not the case. I do not believe that Colorado legalizing
marijuana has impacted my county in any meaningful way.
A few jurisdictions did report increased caseloads, however, such as the Trego County
Attorneys Office, which reported a 200% increase over the last two years. And even where the
overall number of marijuana prosecutions has not increased, prosecutors report that high grade
Colorado marijuana has replaced marijuana from other sources.
Prosecutors in a number of jurisdictions reported the presence of marijuana edibles from
Colorado. The Johnson County District Attorneys Office, for instance, has definitely seen an
increase in edibles, which has led to overdoses, and stressed the need for partnership between
law enforcement and the medical community to educate the public about the dangers of
marijuana, including edibles.
Most prosecutors reported no change in how judges treat marijuana offenses, although a few
responded that judges have become more lenient. For example, the Leavenworth County
Attorneys Office explained that one of their judges routinely uses the legalization of marijuana
in Colorado as a rationale for sentence mitigation and downward departure, and the Johnson
County District Attorneys Office reported a willingness of District Court judges to grant
probation on border box cases. According to the Ellis County Attorney, the trend of increased
leniency for marijuana offenses has been occurring for some time:
The erosion of marijuana sentencing has been occurring long before Colorado
legalized certain marijuana. When I started prosecution in 1989, the standard
sentence was thirty (30) days which the defendant served for possession of
marijuana. Through the years it was decreased to ten (10) days, to five (5) days, to
forty-eight (48) hours to one (1) day to probation to diversion. This was not a
7
result of the Colorado law, but simply the response to county jail overcrowding,
due in greater part to the mandatory DUI sentencing laws rather than Colorado
marijuana. It is apparent that the public tolerance of marijuana has drastically
changed over the past twenty-five (25) years that has been reflected by judges
sentencings.
The legalization of marijuana in Colorado has also affected juries. Several jurisdictions
reported that prospective jurors in voir dire are now more likely to express acceptance of
marijuana use and to state an opinion that marijuana should be legalized. The Leavenworth
County Attorneys Office has observed a decline in juror willingness to convict for marijuana
related offenses:
Prosecutors in my office have reported to me that they have experienced a
substantial decline in our jurors willingness to convict for Marijuana-related
offenses since January 1, 2014. It is now very common for jurors to either acquit
or to convict of lesser-included Marijuana offenses even when the evidence is
strong or overwhelming. These attitudes appear to be shared across the entire
spectrum of race and age. Older jurors commonly explain that they oppose
Marijuana prosecutions because they have friends or family members who use
Marijuana to alleviate medical ailments as a cheap substitute for expensive
pharmaceutical drugs. Younger jurors commonly explain that they view
Marijuana as equivalent to or even less serious than tobacco or alcohol, and they
oppose the use of tax funds to prosecute marijuana cases. The vast majority of
jurors have expressed their support of legalization of Marijuana for medical
purposes only, with heavy taxation used to support education and other public
services. There appears to be less support for recreational use.
The survey responses detailed a number of other factors which affect prosecutors ability to bring
marijuana cases. For example, crimes involving small amounts of marijuana are sometimes never
presented to the prosecutor. The Clark County Attorneys Office reported that local officers stop
at least five cars a day with personal use amounts of marijuana, which they confiscate without
issuing a citation. Similarly, the Sherman County Attorney explained:
I have had law enforcement officers in Sherman County tell me that they are not
even bothering with small personal use marijuana now they will simply have the
individual dump the marijuana out and crush it into the ground. I was told that
they do not want to waste their time on the small personal use amount when they
know there is a constant stream of vehicles going through with much larger
quantities.
Prosecutors also expressed difficulty in dealing with out-of-State defendants. As the Saline
County Attorneys Office explained:
Most of our Colorado marijuana cases from the interstate are misdemeanor
possession cases. KHP does not arrest and then I have to decide whether to
charge. The difficulty is getting these people to appear when they live in another
8
state. Interstate extradition on misdemeanor cases is discouraged and is expensive.

Some of those arrested, posted bond, and failed to appear. The case will remain
open until the defendant happens to have contact with law enforcement in Kansas.
This may be years. Most of our cases do not involve local residents.
It has also become more difficult to distinguish possession cases from distribution cases, with
individuals claiming that they buy in bulk in Colorado for their personal use.
Conclusion
Overall, the survey results demonstrate that Colorado marijuana is widely present throughout
Kansas. Although it is not clear that Colorado marijuana legalization has led to a significant
overall increase in the number of marijuana crimes statewide, some jurisdictions reported an
increase. One of the primary effects of Colorado marijuana legalization seems to be that highgrade Colorado marijuana has replaced lower quality marijuana from Mexico and homegrown
marijuana. There has also been a significant increase in the amount of marijuana edibles and
products such as waxes and oils in Kansas, which raises serious concerns, particularly with
respect to juveniles.
Online Appendix
The survey responses are available in two spreadsheets (compiled from letters, emails, phone
calls, and the survey webpage) at www.ag.ks.gov/survey-results.
Office
Anderson County
Attorney's Office
Atchison County
Attorney
Barber County
Attorney
Bourbon County
Attorney's Office
Brown County
Attorney's Office
Criminal prosecutions CINC cases

Asset forfeiture cases
Edibles Please elaborate
Defense arguments based on
involving CO marijuana involving CO
related to CO marijuana from CO
Colorados laws
marijuana
~3
0
0
yes
I am not completely sure
on what exactly was
found, but some juveniles
and young adults (late
teens and/or early 20s)
were caught smoking pot
at the lake and were
found to be in possession
of edibles that they
purchased in CO.
Change in how Please elaborate

judges treat
marijuana cases?
0
no
How do you know the marijuana was

from Colorado?
Overall effects
Any other information
We were either told the marijuana was Makes a lot of the public feel that is 'not a big
purchased in CO from dispensaries or
deal' to possess or use the drug.
we found receipts showing the same.
no
no
No effect
None
no
yes
Negligible.
The designation of a first

offense marijuana as a Class A
misdemeanor coupled with the
availability and ease of
receiving diversion on such a
charge around the State,
separates and distinguishes
marijuana from other illicit
drugs more than Colorado's
legalization.
maybe
no
About 5 cases (1 large no

seizure, several smaller
ones) since March 2015.
yes - one for sure
yes
no
There have been a variety

of products, including hot
wing sauce.
Recently a judge refused to send a

defendant to KDOC, mentioning the case
involved personal use amounts. Hard to
say whether that was tied to Colorado
marijuana legalization.
The packaging lists the store, telephone It's caused a lot of conversation in the office
number, and other information. The
about how to deal with marijuana offenses.
packaging for the edibles listed the
grams of THC.
NA
Little to no effect
NA
Office
Butler County
Attorney's Office

marijuana
My best estimate is four I am not aware
or five criminal cases a of any child in
year that we are aware need of care
of involve Colorado
cases involving
marijuana. However,
Colorado
this is not something we marijuana but
have been tracking.
we do not
specifically
track this.
Chase County
Attorney
Cherokee County
Attorney
Cheyenne County
Attorney
Clark County
Attorney's Office
0 none


Colorados laws
I am not aware of any

asset forfeiture cases
involving this issue.
yes
To my knowledge there have not

been cases where this issue has
been raised as a defense.
However, occasionally this point
is occasionally made in attempt to
mitigate penalties.
none
no
Butler County
occasionally has
individuals that are
stopped by law
enforcement while
driving through our
county with marijuana
from Colorado.
Additionally, there have
been a few cases where
items have been seized
from houses by law
enforcement agents in
the county that appear to
be commercially
packaged marijuana
edibles, oils, etc. from
Colorado.
none

judges treat
marijuana cases?
no

from Colorado?
Overall effects
In the specific cases I referenced in my

answers the facts clearly indicated that
the individuals involved were returning
from Colorado and did not have ties to
the local community. Additionally,
other items found look to have been
packaged and sold as marijuana in
Colorado.
There have been a few cases in the county that

can be specifically tied to Colorado marijuana,
but there has been an increase in sentencing
mitigation arguments based on 'legalization' in
Colorado.
no
No effect
no
no
Defendants admissions
Prospective jurors in voir dire have provided

responses indicating a social acceptance to
medicinal and recreational use of marijuana.
This provides some indication of the effect in
our jurisdiction of Colorado's legalization.
no
no
We have not seen anything or been

given any indication that any of our
marijuana cases involve Colorado
marijuana.
Minimal.
Our local deputies and sheriff

tell me they stop at least 5 cars
a day with personal-use
marijuana inside and
absolutely refuse to issue a
citation or report for it. They
simply confiscate it and send
them on their way. I cannot
prosecute cases they don't give
me, and I cannot report cases
here that I do not have firm
information about. In short,
believe the SOs would have
better information on how
many of those stops involved
Colorado marijuana.
minimal
Always not sure if MJ is from

CO or not.
unable to determine
Colorado origin
In addition to our local users, we have

seen multiple cases involving
defendants from Minnesota who have
possessed rather large amounts of
marijuana. We also get quite a few
from the southwestern states (New
Mexico, Arizona, California).
Cloud County
Attorney
no
no
Office
Coffey County
Attorney's Office

marijuana
approximately 20
zero
Comanche County
Attorney
Cowley County
Attorney Office
Decatur County
Attorney
2-4
none
Dickinson County
Attorney's Office
Douglas County
District Attorney
Edwards County
Attorney
Elk County
Attorney
10 to 15 cases (purely
an estimate)

Colorados laws
zero
no
zero
no
no
no
none
20

none
2 to 3 (same)
unknown

from Colorado?
Overall effects
Defendants will often tell law

enforcement that they purchased the
marijuana in Colorado.
I took office in November 2014; as a result,

without extensive review of old case files, I am
unsure of the number and nature of marijuana
cases in Coffey County before Colorado
legalized marijuana in 2012. Consequently, it is
difficult to provide a 'before and after' type
analysis and give an opinion on how Coffey
County has been affected by Colorado's
legalization. My staff has worked in the office
for many years and their impression is that the
number of marijuana cases has remained
consistent in recent years despite Colorado's
legalization.
no
no
1 2 (not handled by this

office)

judges treat
marijuana cases?
no
no
none
no
no
yes
brownies and other

edibles
no
yes
Just recently, we are

starting to see more
edibles. However, we
have yet to charge any
edibles as they have not
been submitted to us for
charging consideration.
There have not been any official

motions or arguments before the
Court using the legalization of
marijuana in other states as a
defense. However, for every case
charged involving marijuana, 90%
of the defense attorneys use the
legalization argument as means
to avoid a harsher penalty when
working out a plea agreement
with our office.
no
no
no
no
We have had an incident with

medical marijuana from
California in a traffic stop.
Defendant bought the marijuana in
Colorado.
NA
Minimal impact so far.

NA
Most, if not all, of the individuals arrested information obtained during the stops
have been non-residents of Kansas and
or subsequent statements from the
not eligible for mandatory drug treatment defendants or others involved
We have more drug cases involving marijuana

but most involve individuals who have
purchased the drug in Colorado and are
transporting it for their personal use. Only a
few of the cases involve individuals
transporting several pounds for distribution.
Nothing specific to Colorado. Marijuana as Most of the information regarding

a lesser drug was argued.
whether or not the marijuana came
from Colorado was provided to us by
our DEU officers. This would have been
known to them when they questioned
the defendant or from packaging found
at the scene.
Because of its close proximity to Kansas,

Colorado has been and continues to be a
primary source of marijuana in our jurisdiction.
I do not believe legalization has had any
significant impact on the prevalence of
marijuana in our jurisdiction.
packaging
very minimal to non-existent

unaffected
Minimal impact in our

jurisdiction.
I am sure we've probably had
some come through the
county, but I can't quantify it.
Office
Ellis County
Attorney

marijuana
Approximately 10 to 15 CINC cases
prosecutions per year
often involve
the isue of
illegal drugs.
Any connection
between the
marijuana used
by the parents
and
determining it
came from
Colorado
would just be a
guess.

Ellis County contracts
with Colin Wood to do
asset forfeiture. Any
information concerning
asset forfeiture would
just be a guess.
yes

Colorados laws

judges treat
marijuana cases?
I am aware that some of The erosion of marijuana
no
Judges often make comments regarding
the personal use
sentencing has been occuring
the legalization of marijuana in Colorado
marijuana has included
long before Colorado legalized
at time of sentencing on Senate Bill 123
edibles form Colorado.
certain marijuana. When I started
(felony marijuana) and/or small quantity
However, the drug unit
prosecution in 1989, the standard
distribution convictions, advising the
advises me that
sentence was 30 days -- which the
defendant if they want to continue with
marijuana bags and/or
defendant served -- for
marijuana they should explore Colorado
vials stamped from
possession of marijuana. Through
after completing their sentence. However,
Colorado are much more the years it was decreased to 10
I have not noticed a change in how judges
prevalent than food
days, to 5 days, to 48 hours, to 1
treat marijuana under the Kansas
additives or edibles.
day, to probation, to diversion.
Sentencing Guidelines based on Colorado.
This was not a result of the
There has been a tremendous change over
Colorado law, but simply the
the years regarding misdemeanor
response to county jail
marijuana.
overcrowding, due in greater part
to the mandatory DUI sentencing
laws rather than Colorado
marijuana. It is apparent that the
public tolerance of marijuana has
drastically changed over the past
25 years that has been reflected
by judges' sentencings.

from Colorado?
Overall effects
Officers are able to determine if it is

Colorado marijuana when it is packaged
with a Colorado sticker on it, or in a
container indicating it is from Colorado.
Have not seen a noticeable increase in
quantity marijuana (felony possession
with intent to distribute) due to
Colorado law. Due to the price of
marijuana in Colorado, I don't believe
people are buying the Colorado
marijuana in bulk to try to redistribute
it in Kansas. However, we do have
personal use individuals who advise
they are trying to take some small
quantity marijuana back to a friend or
person back home.
Overall, I think the fear of the effects of

Colorado legalization on Kansas have
outstripped the actual impact in our
jurisdiction. I have no way of knowing if those
individuals caught with personal use marijuana
with Colorado markings would have obtained
marijuana locally, but I suspect that a majority
of them would have. One positive thing I have
observed is that a significant number of
probationers and/or post-release supervision
defendants, upon completing their
sentences/probation/post-release are
requesting a transfer to Colorado and/or
moving to Colorado to take advantage of the
legalized marijuana. This could have a dramatic
effect on Colorado in the future and their
ability to provide services to those immigrating
into Colorado due to the marijuana. The direct
impact on Ellis County has been negligible.
Office
Ellsworth County
Attorney
Geary County
Attorney
Graham County
Attorney
Hamilton County
Attorney

marijuana
60+
none


Colorados laws
none
A legal defense to the possession

of Colorado marijuana was raised
in Ellsworth County District Court
Case 2011-CR-22, State vs. Troy
Cooper. This involved medicial
marijuana and the Kansas Court
of Appeals ruled, in an
unpublished decision, that
possession of Colorado medical
marijuana was still a crime under
Kansas law. Other than Cooper, I
am unaware of any other legal
defenses that have been raised.
yes
I have seen a handful of

cases involving food
products. Typically these
items are found in their
original, retail packaging,
having been purchased in
the Denver metropolitan
area. I have been
charging as misdemeanor
possession because I am
not sure how much
marijuana/THC by weight
is found in the food item
and I have no evidence to
lead me to believe the
food item was intended
for consumption by
anyone other than the
immediate possessor

judges treat
marijuana cases?
The judges who hear Colorado marijuana
cases in Ellsworth County agree with the
prosecutor that incarceration of Colorado
marijuana importers is counterproductive. We need our very limited jail
space and male prison space to house
violent offenders, sex criminals, meth
head thieves and burglars, and sellers of
opioid pills and Mexican brown heroin. I
have already opined as to the
overcrowding at the Ellsworth County Jail.
I am quite familiar with KDOC stats and
DOC operations (having a 1000 plus bed
prison in my backyard). The Secretary of
Corrections is very optimistic when he says
he is at 108% capacity, in the male side.
Short of the Kansas legislature providing
funding for the construction of a minimum
security, drug-treatment focus prison, it
does not serve the citizens of Ellsworth
County, or the State of Kansas, well to
incarcerate these Colorado marijuana
importers.

from Colorado?
Overall effects
It is very easy to identify marijuana as

"Colorado marijuana." This is because
95% plus is taken into evidence in the
original, retail packaging. Indeed, the
only non0Colorado marijuana we see is
really not even marijuana; rather, it is
the synthetic marijuana commonly
referred to as "K-2". I have a notebook
in my office where I have collected over
60 plus synthetic marijuana recipes,
courtesy of the KBI Lab.
The effect of Colorado marijuana legalization

has spurred the Kansas Highway Patrol to make
a significant increase in drug interdiction stops
on I70 in Ellsworth County. The on-going joke is
that the Highway Patrol only stops every third
car, eastbound. Not every car stop yields
marijuana. Other drugs are often found
(predominatly meth) and a significant number
of person stopped are driving on suspended
licenses, or wanted in toehr jurisdictions.
Typically, KHP arrest between 7 and 15 persons
per week of I70 in Ellsworth County. Of course,
all of these people find their way to the already
overcrowded Ellsworth County Jail.
I think the Attorney General's

Office might consider a K.S.A.
21-2504(a) request concerning
methamphetamine in rural
Kansas. I have been in law
enforcement in Kansas for over
34 years and I think the meth
problem is worse now than it
even has been. I base this on
the number of meth arrests I
have seen last year and the
number of meth cases I have
successfully prosecuted. Also,
the number of child in need of
care cases that have a meth
component.
Any information provided is based on

Since, I serve in Hamilton County, which
defendants' statements, their counsels' borders Colorado, I expected a significant
statements or other reliable indicators. increase in marijuana cases as a result of
legalization in Colorado. Surprisingly, this is not
the case. I do not believe that Colorado
legalizing marijuana has impacted my county in
any meaningful way.
In closing, I would state that

from my point of view as a
prosecutor the effect of
Colorado legalizing marijuana
has been negligible in Hamilton
County.
I have personally
prosecuted 863 drugs
cases within that time
period and another 100150 civil forfeiture
cases. Unfortunately,
we are unable to
ascertain, or begin to
guess, of the number of
cases that specifically
involve marijuana from
Colorado.
0
5
no
None, in the form of a legal

argument, though certainly this
argument has been raised in
negotiations, however this is
nothing new.
no
Office
Harper County
Attorney

marijuana
3
0
0
no
Hodgeman County
Attorney

Colorados laws
no

from Colorado?
Overall effects
The only basis I have are the hearsay

statements of the accused or other
witnesses
Many people think that legalization in Kansas none

will be inevitable given that Colorado and other
surrounding States are legalizing it. They seem
to be more bold about their opinions that it
should be legal.
The client said so.
No effect
no
Jackson County
Attorney
best estimate 10
best estimate 3 best estimate 5
yes
Jewell County
Attorney
None
None
None
no
Johnson County
District Attorney
We do not track this

data. Our office has
prosecuted numerous
cases where Colorado
marijuana has been
seized. A safe estimate
would be dozens of
cases each year. This
has increased
significantly over the
last couple of years.
We are aware
of only one
case, however
we do not track
this data.
We do not track this

data. We do not handle
all forfeiture
proceedings.
yes
We have seen an increase A good portion of defendants cite

in edibles, which have
Colorado's legalization efforts as a
typically been used by
reason for leniency.
adults. We have had one
case where edibles were
provided to a minor.
yes
We have seen a willingness of District

The cases associated with "Colorado"
Court judges to grant probation on border marijuana are based on statements
box cases.
made by defendants, the packaging or
labeling on the marijuana, or other
evidence.
no
no
I believe that there are two cases of

possession of marijuana where the
individual purchased the marijuana in
Colorado, but I am not positive.
Kingman County
Attorney
We have had several

cases where people have
possessed 'Colorado
marijuana' for personal
use and several that were
transporting/selling.

judges treat
marijuana cases?
5
no
Two defendants have asserted

that they failed drug tests
because they went to Colorado
and used there.
yes
None
no
Judges tend to be much more lenient with

marijuana possession and distribution
cases than other drugs, citing Colorado's
law. Also, they will encourage a user to
'move to Colorado' if they want to
continue to use/possess marijuana.
About half of defendants have admitted The biggest effect has been the treatment
that is where it came from. The other (minimization) of the crime of possession and
half was believed to be Colorado
distribution by the judges.
marijuana due to the labeling and
quality.
N/A
None.
To date, no issue of Colorado marijuana

None
legalization has been raised in this jurisdiction.
It has become a cheap location to purchase
marijuana for both personal use or for
distribution. We have definitely seen an
increase in edibles, which has led to overdoses.
No substantial effect.
I believe we need to partner

with law enforcement and the
medical community to educate
the public about the dangers of
marijuana, including the
edibles that are being sold.
Office
Kiowa County
Attorney's Office

marijuana
17
0
1
no

Colorados laws

judges treat
marijuana cases?
yes
Judges have watered down the standards
on whether someone goes to prison for
dealing marijuana. Cases that used to be
amounts obvious for distribution are no
longer obvious, because the defendant
gets to argue that they went to the 'Sam's
Club' of marijuana in Colorado and were
just buying in bulk.
most of them

from Colorado?
Overall effects
The defendants are either telling us

themselves that they bought it at a
shop in Colorado, or it is actually
professionally labeled and branded
when we discover it.
Highway 54/400 is a major artery from

Colorado to Wichita and i believe that is why
we have several of these cases in an otherwise
small jurisdiction.
There is definitely a money

making enterprise going on in
transporting freely available
Colorado marijuana to
neighboring states. This
involves Colorado residents, as
well as enterprising KS
residents. I wish your office
luck in trying to do something
about this.
Several defendants who we have

apprehended are Colorado residents
actually bringing the drugs into KS to make
quick money. Those defendants almost
always want to argue about probation
conditions that they have a 'right' to
smoke marijuana in their home state
(ignoring that probation conditions often
involve abstention from alcohol, also a
legal substance).
Labette County
Attorney
yes
We had a controlled buy

and our confidential
informant went to an
apartment looking for a
specific person. The
person was not there, but
the CI had a
conversation regarding
Colorado marijuana.
The CI said there were a
number of Colorado
marijuana items in the
apartment.
yes
There has been nothing specific in terms The people in question made specific
of lower sentences, however, our Judges statements regarding Colorado
have made comments regarding the
marijuana.
Colorado marijuana laws; or how long it
might be before Kansas does the same
thing.
It used to be that law enforcement might be

able to target several area marijuana dealers
and the supply would be cut off or at least
tightened for a while. With the Colorado
marijuana, this is no longer possible. Law
enforcement is really not even bothering to
target marijuana anymore because of the
watering down of penalties and the continuous
supply from Colorado. Hitting a dealer here
now is simply ineffective in stemming the tidal
wave of supply from Colorado.
I believe that Colorado marijuana has had a

chilling effect on the desire of the community
to convict and punish marijuana violations. I
have had a number of potential jurors during
voir dire opine their belief that marijuana
should be legal, oddly enough these statements
were made in non-marijuana cases.
In reference to answer #8,

these people are respectable
members of society. They are
not members of what might be
considered a legalize pot
movement.
Office
Leavenworth
County Attorney's
Office
Lincoln County
Attorney
Linn County
Attorney's Office

marijuana
About 16
3 or 4
23

None
yes

Colorados laws

judges treat
marijuana cases?
yes
Judge Gunnar Sundby routinely makes
statements on the record during cases
involving Marijuana that nationwide
attitudes toward legalization of Marijuana
(specifically mentioning Colorado and
sometimes Washington) has shifted and
he believes the public no longer supports
'harsh' criminal penalties for Marijuana.
Judge Sundby routinely uses this rationale
as the basis for sentence mitigation and
downward departure in Marijuana cases,
going so far as to do so sua sponte. Our
office appealed one such case, State v.
Derek Fevurly, Court #11CR541, Appeal
#13-110254-A, wherein Judge Sundby
referred to the evolving societal attitudes
toward the type of offense (Marijuana
possession) as one of the reasons for his
departure. While the district court case
was pending Fevurly absconded to
Colorado where he hid for a year before
being arrested and extradited back to
Kansas.
Our office has

Perhaps only 1 or 2.
encountered less than ten
cases involving edibles
(usually chocolates
infused with THC), but a
Colorado connection may
exist in perhaps only one
or two of those cases.
0 0 - Kansas Highway
Patrol always takes them
no
yes
no
no
As the 'legality' of the Colorado laws is a

complicating factor in the overall
sentencing by the courts. We have seen
fines and unsupervised probation as our
jurisdiction is unable to appropriately
supervise these matter.

from Colorado?
Overall effects
The kind of evidence we have

encountered that shows a connection
to Colorado includes, for example:
a.Colorado rental vehicles driven by
persons who flew to Colorado and then
rented a vehicle to transport the
Marijuana home;
b.Colorado medical Marijuana
paperwork on or near the Marijuana; or
c.Statements that the Marijuana was
obtained in Colorado.
We apologize that we are unable to
provide specific cases; finding these
specific cases would require our staff to
manually review the files of all
Marijuana-related cases since 2014,
which is impracticable with our current
resources.
Prosecutors in my office have reported to me

that they have experienced a substantial
decline in our jurors willingness to convict for
Marijuana-related offenses since January 1,
2014. It is now very common for jurors to
either acquit or to convict of lesser-included
Marijuana offenses even when the evidence is
strong or overwhelming. These attitudes
appear to be shared across the entire spectrum
of race and age. Older jurors commonly
explain that they oppose Marijuana
prosecutions because they have friends or
family members who use Marijuana to alleviate
medical ailments as a cheap substitute for
expensive pharmaceutical drugs. Younger
jurors commonly explain that they view
Marijuana as equivalent to or even less serious
than tobacco or alcohol, and they oppose the
use of tax funds to prosecute marijuana cases.
The vast majority of jurors have expressed their
support of legalization of Marijuana for medical
purposes only, with heavy taxation used to
support education and other public services.
There appears to be less support for
recreational use. These statements arise
during voir dire, so transcripts could possibly be
obtained.
My office will continue to

uphold the laws of Kansas
regardless of changing societal
or judicial attitudes.
The majority of the cases in our

jurisdiction deals with marijuana from
Colorado and we have not been able to
discern other sources.
It is extremely problematic on our jurisdiction.

One, there has been increase in cases. Two,
the difference between personal use (ie, buy a
lot so you don't have to go back) and actual
distribution has been blurred. Third, we don't
have the resources to deal with it and because
of the large amounts of cases the stops have
been pushed into the smaller counties that
'deal out' the defendants and move the case
along. Lincoln County is one of the those
counties. Lastly, the limited resources that we
have are being designated to our 'hometown'
drug defendants and should not be squandered
on those defendants from interstate. KBI is
overwhelmed with testing and we usually deal
out the defendant and cancel testing due to the
timing issues.
N/A
It appears that it has had no effect as we are

remote from Colorado.
Office
Lyon County
Attorney's Office

marijuana
15
0
0
no
Marshall County
Attorney
McPherson County approximately 35 (139

Attorney
marijuana cases total,
estimate 25% from CO)

Colorados laws
yes
THC gummy bears
yes
"laffy taffy," vapors,

None
cookies and suckers.
Cookies seem to be more
common than other
edibles.

judges treat
marijuana cases?
1
no

from Colorado?
Overall effects
statements from defendant's driving to KBI indicates it is getting harder to identify

colorado to get it, statement from
colorado, characteristics are changing, people
defendant regarding medical
driving further distances to get it 'legally'.
prescription for marijuana from
colorado
Its here more than we find I am

sure. we haven't discovered
any through mailing yet.
We did have two respectableappearing women in their mid50's driving from Colorado to
Indiana. One had a prescription
for medicial marijuana. They
were found with marijuana and
items such as THC gummy
bears. They were not driving
erratically; rather, the driver
was stopped for failing to use a
turn signal. These ladies were
immediately nervous,
forthcoming, cooperative, and
very apologetic. No large sums
of money were found. Neither
had a criminal record. They
were charged with
misdemeanor marijuana and
the marijuana was seized. That
has been my limited
experience with Colorado
marijuana to date.
no
We have reports from officers that the Our prosecution numbers increased from 2014
Colorado weed has a certain
to 2015, but it is difficult to determine
distinguishable smell. Certain packaging correlation to the change in law.
for marijuana and edibles has labeling
indicating it was purchased in Colorado.
Office
Meade County
Attorney

Colorados laws
judges treat
marijuana
marijuana cases?
21
2
0
yes
We have had at least two
10
no
cases where there were
'marijuana brownies' that
were found on a traffic
stop. Defendants
admitted that they had
purchased them in
Colorado. Also had the
mother involved in the
two Child In Need of Care
Cases admitted to
bringing marijuana
additives back to use
from Colorado.
Miami County
Attorney
yes
Morris County
Attorney
Morton County
Attorney
Ness County
Attorney
Norton County
Attorney
Osage County
Attorney's Office
To my knowledge we
have only had one case
involving clearly
identifiable THC from
Colorado. It consisted of
edibles and liquid.

from Colorado?
Overall effects
In all the cases that I am referencing,

either the Defendants admitted that
they had obtained the marijuana-in
whatever form- in Colorado or they
were traveling from Colorado with
documented proof at the time they
were stopped in Meade County leading
us to assume the point of origin of the
drugs.
We have seen an increase in the number of

cases involving smaller quantities of marijuana
or products containing marijuana, including a
substance referred to as 'ear wax' or marijuana
wax or butter; THC infused hash; and THC
infused 'Blue Kudu Chocolate'.
Since our county has Highway

54 as well as Highway 160
which are both often used for
travelers to and from Colorado,
we have always had several
traffic stops which lead to
criminal cases involving drugs.
However, it has been more
apparent that the use and
possession of marijuana has
increased in amounts more
consistent with personal usage
since Colorado has legalized.
Also, Defendants are much
more forth-coming with
information about where they
obtained the THC as they think
that since they purchased it
legally in CO, they will not face
punishment here.
no
The labeling indicated the range of mg No change at this point.

of THC and that the THC was distributed
from Colorado.
no
no
We have not seen a difference in the cases that

have been filed in Morris County
no
no
To date, have seen no issues with Colorado

Marijuana in my jurisdiction.
~3
yes
One case
yes
I have had two cases

where edibles, along with
marijuana, was
purchased in CO and
brought back to KS for
resale.
no
The marijuana seized could be

identified as having a Colorado source
through its distributor label.
We have have had two separate traffic
stops in which large quantities of
marijuana was found and it was
discovered that the marijuana was
purchased in CO and was being
transported back to KS for distribution.
There appears to be no significant change in

enforcement actions in our jurisdiction since
January 1, 2014.
I think it has made marijuana use more
acceptable by the public, and it has made
defense attorneys seek lesser penalties for
crimes involving marijuana.
Although I believe marijuana is

being brought into Ness
County from legal Colorado
vendors, I have no proof that it
is being distributed in anything
other than small amounts
through various acquaintances.
Whatever prosecutions for
marijuana possession I have
Office
Osborne County
Attorney
Ottawa County
Attorney

marijuana
Estimate - 6
1
0
no
5
Pawnee County
Attorney
Phillips County
Attorney
I'm not aware of any.
Pottawatomie
County Attorney
None Known
Republic County
Attorney
Rice County
Attorney
I'm not aware

of any.
estimate of 8

0
None Known
1
Nothing to report
no
1
None Known
yes
yes
Both 'business' and

recreational users make it
clear they travel to CO to
obtain marijuana. It
travels back often in the
same packaging, and we
find it distributed to
those who did not make
the trip, just waited for
the dealer to return.

Colorados laws

judges treat
marijuana cases?
0
no

from Colorado?
Overall effects
Information obtained by local law

Little effect.
enforcement.
I counted only those cases that had
The single worst effect is the justification it
either an admission from someone with gives the users.
first-hand knowledge or the original
packaging.
Nearly every MJ case - and every

CINC case involving MJ raises the
'organic' or 'legal to the west'
defense
no
no
N/A
I have seen no impact to date.
no
the defendant is from Colorado
I wish we knew how much of the marijuana

from other cases is from marijuana but we
have not been able to ascertain that.
N/A
I believe the true effect comes from the

community. I believe that citizens see the
possession and/or even distribution of
marijuana as less severe because other states
have legalized it and they do not really
understand the perimeters of the legalization,
etc.
One case involved a large none

quantity of marijuana.
The majority involve a
driver being pulled over
for speeding, the car
smelling of marijuana and
a search yielding personal
use.
no
No cases where it has been used

as a defense. A few defense
attorneys have used the
legalization of marijuana in other
states as an argument for a lesser
penalty.
no
no
no
minimal
I think it will become more of

any argument for lesser
penalties that other states
have legalized it. I see it
influencing legislation even
now as bills are introduced to
change the penalties, etc.
Office
Riley County
Attorney's Office
Rooks County
Attorney Office
Russell County
Attorney

Colorados laws
marijuana
Uncertain. Perhaps a
One,
None.
yes
Can't put a number on it, None
dozen or more traffic
indirectly. The
but there have been
cases? Unable to
father keeps
edibles or their packaging
provide how many CO using
seen.
Marijuana cases on KSU marijuana and
campus as most of them wants to move
go to City of Manhattan to Colorado to
Prosecutors Office.
allow him to
use.
Estimated 23 cases. We none

file numerous marijuana
cases and others may
have ties to Colorado
that are unknown.
no
no

judges treat
marijuana cases?
no
no

from Colorado?
Overall effects
The information verifying that the

marijuana was Colorado marijuana was
gained by admissions of the Defendant,
packaging with dispensary labels, or
receipts of the purchases.
The narcotics detectives tell me that the quality

of marijuana has significantly increased since
Colorado legalized. Officers and Detectives are
not seeing the low quality marijuana that they
used to. Most of the product appears to be
higher quality and in abundance.
Currently, we have a pending

case involving three main
suspects with pounds of
marijuana coming directly from
Colorado. The suspects would
electronically transfer several
thousands of dollars to
Colorado and pick up the
marijuana in Colorado. They
would then travel back to Riley
County. The sum of the fund
transfers was well over
$150,000 over a period of a
year. A receipt from a
dispensary was located during
a traffic stop while one of the
suspects was traveling back to
Manhattan. Detectives were
also able to view text messages
confirming trips to Colorado.
no
Address found on medicinal marijuana

bottle. Statements made by Defendant
and witness as to where marijuana was
purchased.
no
The number of cases is provided based

upon either the persons telling Law
Enforcement that the marijuana is
coming from Colorado or that the
persons charged were generally
arrested, traveling East on I-70 and
coming from Colorado.
Most persons have been people buying varying

quantities of marijuana to take back to their
home for personal use. Generally it has not had
a major effect on our caseload. It does require
additional work by KBI lab chemists who have
been unable to keep up with the Kansas drug
caseloads.
Office
Saline County
Attorney
Scott County
Attorney

marijuana
I am a little
apprehensive about
responding as there is
really no way to
compute the impact of
"Colorado marijuana" in
Saline County. I kept an
unofficial tally of cases
since March 1, 2015,
that involve stops on
the interstate in which
"Colorado marijuana"
was located. I believe I
can identify 33 cases
during that 9 months
period.
16

yes

Colorados laws
We have had 4 specific

almost every one
cases that I can think of
where traffic stops
yielded large quantities of
marijuana from people
driving through who
admitted they were
coming from Colorado
and going to a destination
in Kansas. We can thank
our flashing red lights for
most of these!

judges treat
marijuana cases?
no

from Colorado?
Overall effects
I have no way to determine how much

"Colorado marijuana" is in Saline County. It is
here though.
Most of our "Colorado

marijuana" cases from the
interstate are misdemeanor
possession cases. KHP does not
arrest and then I have to
decide whether to charge. The
difficulty is getting these
people to appear when they
live in another state. Interstate
extradition on misdemeanor
cases is discouraged and is
expensive. Some of those
arrested, posted bond, and
failed to appear. The case will
remain open until the
defendant happens to have
contact with law enforcement
in Kansas. This may be years.
Most of our cases do not
The 4 cases with large amounts of

This is my first term as county attorney, so I
marijuana, the defendant admitted that have no basis to answer this question.
was where their trip originated. Other
possession cases, defense mentioned
their clients get it in Colorado so
thought it was fine. I have no way of
verifying this information and I have a
hunch that it is just the assumption
within our drug culture that claiming
legal Colorado marijuana will get them
out of trouble. We do see defendants
that are required to do drug testing as
part of bond, probation, or diversion,
claiming that they went to Colorado to
smoke so it was not illegal.
Office
Sherman County
Attorney
Sheridan County
Attorney
Smith County

marijuana
We have seen a
This is a much
dramatic increase in
more difficult
marijuana cases since
number to
the legalization of
determine.
marijuana in Colorado, Often, we have
starting in 2012 after
a CINC case
the increased or
where a parent
widespread availability may test
of medical marijuana.
positive for
2012 - 26 marijuana
marijuana, but
prosecutions; 2013 - 60; there is no
2014- 71; 2015 -108; In effort on the
2014, all but 11 of the part of the
71 cases can more than agencies or
likely be tied to
court services
Colorado. In 2015, 74 of to determine
the 108 cases can more the source.
than likely be tied to
Colorado (more details
in spreadsheet and
letter)

I do not know as my
office does not handle
asset forfeiture cases.
Further, the large
majority of our
marijuana cases are
through traffic stops by
KHP.
yes
none
none
no
none
no

Colorados laws

judges treat
marijuana cases?
There has been edibles
No one has raised a formal
no
I have not seen a change in the judicial
found in Sherman
defense, but it is not unusual for a
attitude as far as sentencing, particilarly
County, substantially
defendant to state to law
with amounts that justify a possession
more in 2015 than in
enforcement that they bought it
with intent to distribute charge. I have
2014. I think part of that legally in Colorado. I am
heard some comments that would
is the result of increased repeatedly remined by defense
possibly indicate that because of the
awareness by the officers counsel that only 15 miles away it
legalization of the possession of marijuana
of the presence of edibles is legal to possess marijuana.
in Colorado that they do not view simple
and what to look for.
possession for personal use to be much of
an issue.
none
no
no

from Colorado?
Overall effects
We have gone back through the case

files to review reports, photographs and
whatever other
evidence may be available to try and
determine the source of the marijuana.
A very typical
fact pattern in may of these cases
involves someone traveling from
another state on I-70 through Sherman
County who is stopped for a traffic
violation. Odor of marijuana is
prominent. Questioning of the
defendant indicates they have recently
traveled to Colorado, in a rental car, for
a one or two day trip. Some will
acknowledge they purchased the
marijuana legally in Colorado. We have
had some state that they make the trip
on a regular basis. Some have stated
that they go to Colorado to buty
marijuana to take back to their state
and sell it to make money.
It has had a detrimental effect on our

jurisdiction. We have seen an increase in the
number of marijuana prosecutions. This has
caused a greater number of limited hours being
spent
on marijuana cases and a lesser amount of time
on property crimes and traffic misdemeanors.
We have limited resources to commit to cases
so we have to choose where to commit those
resources. It has increased the number of
average jail days as well. Most importantly, we
have seen an increase in the number of
marijuana cases that involve larger amounts of
marijuana, not simple personal use possession.
In fact, I have had law enforcement officers in
Sherman County tell me that they are not even
bothering with small personal use marijuana
now they will simply have the individual
dump the marijuana out and crush it into the
ground. I was told that they do not want to
waste their time on the small personal use
amount when they know there is a constant
stream of vehicles going through with much
larger quantities. When I first started
prosecuting in Sherman County in 2013, I was
amazed when there was a case with a pound of
marijuana. Now, it seems to be fairly routine
for us
to get a case with multiple pounds of
marijuana. We recently had one individual who
was
NA caught with several pounds of marijuana I am sure we've had some
Colorado marijuana in the
county but it is not able to be
quantified.
I have not had any increase in marijuana
possession cases since the 'legalization' in
Colorado.
While it is certainly possible, even probable,
that there is more marijuana travelling though
Smith County now (highway 36 is a direct line
to Denver), law enforcement has not indicated
any issues with increased marijuana use or
possession by local residents.
NA
Office
Stafford County
Attorney
Stanton County
Attorney

marijuana
3 to 4
none
At least 2 to 3 cases. I
am sure there is much
more out there
effecting our
community, but we are
a small county with
limited resources.
Stevens County
Attorney
Thomas County
Attorney
10-15 cases (estimate)


Colorados laws
none
no
none

judges treat
marijuana cases?
Marijuana possession cases in Stafford
County (which, like Ellsworth County, is in
the Twentieth Judicial District) usually take
a backseat to the prosecution of more
significant criminal offenses and more
significant drug cases. To begin, Stafford
County does not have a jail, courtesy of
the State Fire Marshal's Office. Hence,
Stafford County must purchase jail space
at other county jails at a varying rate of
$45.00 a day to $75 a day. At any given
time, Stafford County has about a dozen
prisoners, distributed between four to six
jails. The cost of transporting prisoners
between said jails and the Stafford County
Courthouse actually exceeds the actual
costs of housing them. What with the lack
of jail space in Stafford County and the
overcrowding on the male prisoner side of
KDOC, it is good public policy for Stafford
County to impose suspended jail
sentences and fine persons possessing or
selling small amounts of marijuana. The #1
problem drug in Stafford County is, of
course, methamphetamine, with opioids
running a strong second.

from Colorado?
Overall effects
In Stafford County, unlike Ellsworth

County, you do not see marijuana in the
original retail package. Thus, we have to
rely upon statements from the accused
to ascertain whether the marijuana in
question has a Colorado connection.
The impact of Colorado marijuana legalization

has been fairly de minimis in Stafford County.
Despite having U.S. Highway 50 traversing
Stafford County, traffic stops do, usually, not
yield marijuana when drugs are found. Rather,
we see methamphetamine (both local and from
Mexico), some cocaine (also from Mexico), and
we are starting to see Mexican brown heroin.
However, the Kansas Highway Patrol has not
yet deployed the number of drug dog cars U.S.
Highway 50 as are employed on Interstate 70.
no
I recall one specific case where

the Defendant felt like he should
not be prosecuted since he
acquired the drug legally in
Colorado. There was one incident
where the Defendant asked for a
lesser penalty (It does make it
more difficult to prosecute these
people when they argue it is legal
just 15 miles west.)
no
Our LEO information in the case and

admissions of the Defendants told us
they acquired it in Colorado.
Overall, it is having an effect. I am sure that I

will see more cases with marijuana coming
from Colorado. I see drugs here as a bigger
problem than ever. Overall, people think it is a
lesser big deal than ever and that attitude
follows over to the defendant's attitude, the
defense attorney's attitude and sometimes the
judge.
no
no
They said it was.
I can't pinpoint the marijuana being from

Colorado so I can't make an assumption.
yes
no
Cases reported are based upon suspects Defense attorneys mention it when clients are
self-reporting.
charged with possession of marijuana in plea
negotiations. My response is tell your client to
move there.
2 cases
I am very much in opposition

of anything in Kansas to
legalize marijuana in any way.
It is a huge gateway drug and
effects crime all the time.
Anything we can do to keep
this illegal is important. I
believe DUI's and other types
of crime will increase if it's
legalized.
Office
Trego County
Attorney

Colorados laws
marijuana
approximately 150
2 Asset forfeitures are
yes
Interstate 70 runs
None
cases
handled by another
through Trego County,
attorney
and as such we have a
number of persons
returning from Colorado
stop for fuel, or are
stopped for traffic
violations. An increasing
number of those stops
result in the filing of
criminal charges. In
addition, the amounts of
marijuana have
increased, particularly
with edibles.
Washington County
Attorney
Wichita County
Attorney
Wilson County
Attorney
0
None that I am aware

judges treat
marijuana cases?
no

from Colorado?
Overall effects
Information received from the officer's

investigations indicate statements from
the defendants that the marijuana was
purchased in Colorado.
The legalization of marijuana in Colorado has

increased the criminal case load in Trego
County approximately 200% over the past two
(2) years.
There is no absolute way to

determine whether or not
various other cases involving
the charge of marijuana
ultimately originated in the
State of Colorado.
0
None
0
None
no
no
0
None
no
no
Woodson County
Attorney's Office
no
yes
Wyandotte County
District Attorney
no
none from Colorado, one claimed

he had a prescription from
California
no
More people talk about moving to Colorado.

I know of cases we have had
Some defendant's believe mj possession is legal where defendant's under the
in Kansas...
court's jurisdiction have been
caught trying to bring Colorado
mj into Kansas.
No Judge has specifically stated such, but Asked the Sheriff and was told we had
it is almost impossible to have a defendant one case.
revoked and remanded to prison for a
positive THC UA.
the father in the CINC case stated in

no discernible effect
court that he had been to Colorado and
had gotten marijuana.
Office/Agency
Seizures
Arrests for impairment
Juveniles Please elaborate
How do you know it's from Colorado?
Overall effect
The marijuana we are seeing from Colorado is much

more potent than marijuana we were seizing prior to
January 2014. This type of Marijuana is typically in
large bud form and commonly labeled for
commercial sale.
Colorados legalization of marijuana has made it

much easier for individuals in Abilene to obtain highgrade marijuana. Nearly all of the intelligence we
are receiving indicates that individuals are traveling
to Colorado to obtain marijuana and bringing it
back to our community for sale.
no
the subjected stated it was from Colorado and the

packaging showed that it was purchased in Colorado.
I believe that there is a large quantity coming into

our jurisdiction but it is hard to prove that it was
obtained in Colorado and transported back to
Kansas.
no
no
Subject admitted he was from Colorado and used

marijuana as a source to help with his back pain.
I believe we have more Colorado marijuana in the not much from the rural southeast Kansas
State, but being able to trace it back to Colorado is area
an issue, but seeing more and more people wanting
legalization based on Colorado.
no
no
no
None
None
None
no
no
no
Abilene Police Department approximately 30
approximately 6
yes
Allen County Sheriff's

Office
one confirmed
one confirmed
Altamont Police
Department
Americus Police
Department
Andale Police Department
0
None
Other Please elaborate

products
no
yes
no
no
no
0
None
These occasions primarily consist of small

amounts of personal use marijuana.
I am aware of one recent case

where an individual was
arrested for possession THC oil
which was obtained from
Colorado.
I think since the legalization of Marijuana in

Colorado I have seen the increase of
Marijuana Cases in Kansas and believe that it
is a direct result of their law.
Anderson County Sheriff

Office
no
no
no
The grade of marijuana. Color and smell. Been a LEO

since 96 and hardly ever saw other then ditch weed or
home grown in this area. If its not Colorado than its
Washington
Not a lot we still see the same amount when we do

arrest for marijuana charges. The difference in the
last three years is our new prosecutor will not
charge possession when it just residue /
paraphernalia.
Not for sure as we got 3 04 bags of marijuana

with labels on them and brands I had never
heard of but it all had the State Of
Washington on them. Other than we
catching them prior to removing the label
how you suppose to know if its coming from
Washington or Colorado.
Andover Police Department
no
no
no
N/A
N/A
In 2014, the Andover Police Department

made 79 drug related cases. In 2015, the
Andover Police Department made 70 drug
related cases. Unfortunately our existing
system for tracking Criminal Justice
information do not readily track this
Colorado marijuana phenomenon. Therefore,
we were unable to identify any of the 149
drug related cases during this two year
period as having originated in Colorado.
Anthony Police Department
no
no
No
Argonia Police
Arkansas City Police
Department
0
0
no
yes
no
yes
N/A
The information about the purchase of marijuana
from Colorado was obtained from mirandized
interviews with the suspects associated with each
case.
NONE
Minimal
Atchison County Sheriff
2 confirmed
I do not have any

Unknown
factual information
to support that any
of the marijuana
that the Atchison
County Sheriff's
Office has seized
was from the State
of Colorado. I do
know that the
Atchison Police
Department has had
a few seizures
linked to Colorado.
DTF had a raid on a house where they found a

juvenile age 16, male, that was smoking
marijuana with his friends who had purchased
it from Colorado.
The subjects from the previous

raid mentioned earlier in the
survey stated they had used the
Colorado marijuana in brownies
that they made here.
no
yes
wax concentration from the

same raid mentioned in
previous parts of the survey.
unknown source of
marijauana
not
revealed
no
no
The "legalization" of Marijuana has caused many

issues for law enforcement acress the state. As we
are on the east border it may not have an effect on
us as much as other counties but it has made its
way to our county.
no effect
Atchison Police
Department
Attica Police Department
Atwood Police Department
no
no
no
0
5
0
0
no
yes
no
no
no
no
Auburn Police Department
0 1 case, undetermined where the

marijuana came from
no
no
no
High School kids are known to have older

friends who drive to Colorado and bring the
marijuana back to our jurisdiction.
It was learned after debriefing of the marijuana and

where it came from.
No effect as of yet.
marijuana has always been easy to get if needed by
a user. More users are becoming sellers do to the
ease of getting it.
All information indicates any marijuana used in the
Auburn area which is minimal is obtained locally
from the Topeka area. Weather that marijuana
came from Colorado in a unknown but a possibility.
require Colorado to have a genetic marker to

actually determine if the marijuana is from
Colorado.
It may be financially beneficial to the State of

Colorado, but it is costing the State of Kansas
and the individual Kansas Counties much
more money than we can afford by enforcing
the law.
Office/Agency
Seizures
Augusta Department of
Public Safety
There have been

102 cases with
marijuana
submitted into
evidence since
January 1st, 2014,
ranging from bags
with residue to live
marijuana plants. In
three (3) of those
cases, the
submitted
marijuana was
particularly
described as a bud.
This would be
consistent with a
higher grade
marijuana than we
have historically
seized. I would
estimate
approximately 1012 cases where I
noted the marijuana
was obviously of
this quality. There
are of course a high
percentage of cases
where it is
impossible to tell 0
no
no
no
no
No
no
no
no
22
22
no
yes
Baxter Springs Police

Department
no
no
no
Bel Aire Police Department
no
no
No
Belle Plaine Police

Department
no
no
no
no
yes
Baldwin City Police Dept.

Barber County Sheriff's
Office
Barton County Sheriff's
Office
Beloit Police Department
20 (estimate)

products
There are two cases in which
wax was submitted as
evidence since January of 2014.
There is no direct evidence as to
this being from Colorado,
although I find no seizures of
wax prior to this time frame.
We found large quantities in a

search warrant. Candies and
lolypops.
consent search yielded empty

THC "candy" containers
yes
yes
Bentley Police Department
no
no
no
Benton Police Department
no
no
no
BNSF Railway Police
no
no
no
Bonner Springs Police

Department
no
no
no
Brown County Sheriff

Buhler Police Department
0
0
0
0
no
no
no
no
no
no
Burden Police Department
no
no
no
Burlington Police
Department
Burns PD
no
no
no
no
no
no
Burrton Police Department
15
no
yes
Overall effect
I am aware of one local case where the marijuana is

known with certainty to have come from a dispensary
in Colorado, but officers commonly note that the
overall quality of marijuana seized has increased
markedly from that we have seen in past years. There
was a period time early last summer when almost
every case appeared to be of this quality. The timing
of the quality change correlates to the legalization of
marijuana in Colorado for recreational use.
Although the majority of our community continues

to support our drug enforcement efforts, the drug
user community has embraced Colorados
legalization efforts and persons arrested or
investigated for violations commonly mention this
fact.
Qualitative analysis by the Kansas Bureau of

Investigation laboratory might assist local
and state law enforcement officials in
identifying the derivation of marijuana.
Intelligence information indicates that
Colorado marijuana is commonly brought in
by vehicle and through the mail.
No effect that we can determine
In the same search warrant as

question four we found oils.
Our detectives noted in investigation the quality and

appearance of the marijuana from Colorado to be
superior than the Mexican marijuana.
This has affected us a great deal with the

availability of the drug, it is common for citizens to
visit and smuggle Colorado pot back to our County.
Legalization of marijuana in Colorado has shown no
known effect within our jurisdiction since 2014
We have made more arrests, but have no definitive

proof the marijuana originated from Colorado
Minimal
The source of procurement is not a necessary

element for a possession case so the
questions may not be asked by investigating
officers on simple possession cases.
Biggest effect appears to be the misinformation

that is spread among the youth of Kansas.
executed search warrant,
recoved E-pen with THC
cartridges
The marijuana seized was identified by suspect as

"Colorado" marijuana
According to individual users, the quality of

marijuana in areas has improved.
We have not received information regarding source

from any contacts.
No effect.
From my observations, and the observations
of my Detectives and property/evidence
officers, there is no Colorado marijuana
situation in our jurisdiction.The marijuana
seized and booked into property has not
changed in quantity, and there has been no
evidence that any of the marijuana has come
from Colorado.
Bronson Police Department nothing to report
We had one shipment of edibles,

that we got, along with some that
look like roll ups and some in
container to mix E-cigarettes
yes
n/a
we have see wax oil but not

very often.
The guy we caught said he had just came from there

earlier that day.
It puts our state in a bad light, in the eyes of our

young citizens who feel that if Colorado dose it
then why can't we.
It has not gotten any worse, at this time.
n/a
Colorado is close, has no border

crossings to get through, and has
both a growing legitimate
marijuana trade and a substantial
black market that has only gotten
larger since it became legal there.
The creative, colorful packaging
and numerous different oils,
liquids, edibles, and waxes are
almost exclusively from Colorado
or from other legal marijuana
U.S. areas. I drove to Denver and
back for a funeral in December of
2015. I only saw three deputy
patrols along I-70 from Hays to
Limon. The Kansas Highway Patrol
is understaffed (100+ short?) and I
did not see a single trooper on I-70
until I got to the Fort Riley area. I
recall thinking that a load of dope
would be very easy to bring into
the state from Colorado as there
seems to be little interdiction on
even a major highway like I-70.
One concern is the many

creative/attractive ways
that marijuana is being
consumed that appeal to
our young. Instead of a
stinky hand rolled
cigarette they now can
simply smoke cherry
flavored water vapor, eat a
gummy worm, or a bowl of
cereal. These are a direct
import from the Colorado
marijuana trade.
Colorado and other areas are passing

laws legalizing marijuana use and
this reflects an overall more relaxed
view of its possession and use by the
public. Legalization is happening in
more and more places across the
United States. Local laws are
relaxing. Cities like Wichita are
talking of decriminalizing its use.
The legalization of marijuana in some
form is probably coming to Kansas
eventually. Kansas legislators and
the Attorney General should become
very educated on the many huge
problems that Colorado is dealing
with and trying to fix. (Everything
from transient populations to
burglaries/robberies and
enforcement/compliance) Hopefully
if/when Kansas adopts new laws on
this we can skip a lot of the problems
by learning from others mistakes.
Office/Agency
Seizures
Butler Community College

Department of Public
Safety
Butler County Sheriff's

Office
Caldwell Police Dept
Caney Police Department

30
Unknown
10
no
yes
An incident of hemp candy being

reported.

products
yes
no
no
no
0
0
no
no
no
Canton Police DEPT.

Cawker City Police
Department
Chanute Police Department
0
0
0
0
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
Chapman PD
yes
no
no
Chase County Sheriff's

Office
Chautauqua County
Sheriff's Office
no
no
No
no
no
no
Cheney Police Department
no
no
no
Cherokee County Sheriff's

Office
no
no
yes
Cherokee Police
Department
no
no
no
no
no
no
Chetopa Police Department

Cheyenne County Sheriff's
Office
Many youth in our high school obtain

marijuana from Junction City or Salina and
then bring it back to our schools. So far this
has only been personal use amounts
yes
Chief Kanopolis Police

Department
no
no
no
Chief of Police/Sac and Fox

Police Department
Chief of Police/Westwood
KS
No
no
no
no
no
no
We served a search warrant

Via interviews, and in some instances there was
within the last quarter in an off- supporting indicia from dispensaries.
campus apartment and
recovered a quantity of
marijuana wax.
Overall effect
It has dramatically impacted the proliferation of

marijuana on my AOR. Marijuana is far and away
the drug of choice on our campus, due primarily to
its ease of obtainment, and the considerable 'high'
that is experienced via little quantity.
This small department appreciates the

efforts of the Ks AG office to address this.
The Colorado export situation is of high
concern to my departmental members, as
well as this college administration. We are
experiencing multiple overdoses being
reported due to the extremely high THC
content.
There has been no noticed effect of Colorado

marijuana within this jurisdiction.
none
Through investigations, It was told to us by the
suspect that's were it came from. Also had individual
bags marked with different type of marijuana on
them.
College aged kids bringing it to our jurisdiction
Make a new law on transporting across state

lines being a felony for the first time
conviction.
Honestly I haven't seen any major effects since the

legalization.
The suspect was arrested during a traffic stop, driving Minimal

through the state. The suspect admitted the
marijuana was from Colorado.
Minimal as of now
In one case, 15 pounds of marijuana was intercepted

while being trafficked from Colorado and delivered to
our county. In another case, a search warrant was
conducted on a local resident who had a medicinal
marijuana card from Colorado and information had
been obtained that the resident was frequently
traveling to Colorado to obtain marijuana and bring it
back to Kansas.
I am a DARE Instructor and have been since

2000. It is of great concern to me that
eventually the Legalized Marijuana from
Colorado will affect my jurisdiction or
someone that I have provided the DARE
Program to. I sincerely hope and pray that
the State of KS never legalizes marijuana in
any way, shape or form.
Although we have only had a few confirmed cases

of Colorado marijuana, we believe those cases are
evidence that it is not just an issue impacting
western Kansas sheriff's, but is growing statewide.
Very hard to locate Colorado Marijuana usage,

surely we have it in the jurisdiction but have not
had the resources to locate the usage or
transportation as of yet only local users and
growers have been apprehended.
Cherokee is located on the well-traveled

US400 Artery from Colorado to the eastern
United States. With Grant assistance, a 24/7
police drug interdiction unit and dogs units,
the City of Cherokee could have an extensive
drug interdiction impact. The drug
transportation/smuggling in my estimate
would exceed 1 million per year for the great
State of Kansas and Cherokee jurisdiction.
Cherokee needs 24/7 coverage of the US400
route and a building to house the seizures
and police headquarters. The Chief and
Assistant Chief have been DEA certified in
the mid-west counter drug training center
Iowa.
The numbers haven't changed, but people say they

aren't buying local anymore. They just drive to
Colorado and bring it back.
Individuals from my small jurisdiction have been
The effect has been with the surrounding agencies There is an increase in use and sales due to
arrested with what was in fact Colorado marijuan as it ie; Ellsworth Police Department and Kansas
the individuals from my small town
was still in the purchased containers and marked by
Highway Patrol
jurisdiction being arrested and charged in
the vendor in Colorado.
joining jurisdictions.
No effect seen in this area.
It was a traffic stop. There was a small amount of
minimal know to us at this point
marijuana located and the driver openly admitted that
he had brought it back from Colorado
We had another subject that we were

arresting for another reason, who explained
all of the various possession laws in
Colorado.
Office/Agency
Seizures

products
Overall effect
Chief/Blue Valley Campus

Police Department
no
no
City of Basehor Police

Department
City of Protection Police
Dept,
City of Quenemo
Claflin Police Department
no
no
no
no
no
No
0
0
0
0
no
no
no
no
No
no
None
Claflin Police Department
yes
no
no
It is known the juvenile arrested had earlier had some Minimal.

Colorado marijuana. We assume that the small
amount he possessed may have also came from
Colorado.
Clay County Sheriff Dept

Cloud County Sheriff's
Office
0
20
0
12
no
yes
no
no
no
yes
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
No
yes
yes
no
no
no
no
no
no
Coffey County Sheriff's

Department
Coffeyville Police
Department
approximately 3
Colby Community College
Unknown
Colby Police Department
approximately 36 of ~5
the 65 cases
Colony City Marshal

Columbus Police
Department
approximately 3
1 for sure Colorado

marijuana
Unknown
0
One
Colwich Police Department none

Comanche County Sheriff's
Office
Concordia Police
Department
Conway Springs Police
Department
Council Grove Police
Department
0
Zero
none
One juvenile was arrested for possession of

what was believed to be marijuana from
Colorado.
We have been seeing a rising number of

traffic stops where people are ingesting
marijuana while traveling through our area. It
is not always a large amount however after
talking to the suspects, it is indicated that it
originates from Colorado.
No
Waxes, oils, candies, cookies have

all been located, always
accompanied by green leafy
marijuana
yes
No
no
No
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no effect
No obvious/observed issues at this time.
We have had a couple arrests

where e-cigarettes were found
that contained marijuana wax.
Several of the individuals arrested made comments

that the marijuana originated in Colorado even
though it went through two or three people prior to
the suspect having it. On certain incidents I have
researched the packaging in order to link the
marijuana back to Colorado. Social media sites have
been used as well. Arrests have been made where
the suspects were transferring money back to
Colorado through Walmart and marijuana was being
sent to our area.
None
no efffect at this time
None
There seems to be an increase in marijuana use and My biggest concern is how many people are
possession in our area since the legalization.
ingesting marijuana while traveling though
Marijuana seems to be obtained easier now.
our county. This has become more common
than drinking while driving in our area.
Information obtained from subject in possession.
Many marijuana users in the area now justify the

use as ok to use locally.
Suspect stated they drove to Colorado and bought the Colorado marijuana is a higher grade more
marijuana.
accessible marijuana on our streets.
I feel there is a lot of Colorado marijuana in

my area but not verified. A lot of the
marijuana collected as evidence appears
more 'engineered' and referred to 'higher
grade'. The rumor mill is saying there are a
few people from my area that are going to
Colorado and buying marijuana, but as of
now I have no solid evidence as of yet.
If marijuana is found we have difficulty proving where Due to the number of Colorado residents/the
This is a very complex question to answer.
it has come from.
legalization of marijuana in Colorado we suspect
that it is being brought across state lines. The ease
of obtaining this substance may be influencing it's
use at our College.
waxes, oils, candies, cookies, all Interviews with suspects revealed the source, or
accompanied by green leafy
packaging indicated source was from dispensery.
marijuana
Drug cases by year

2012-17
2013-46
2014-62
2015-65
More and more travelers coming through our

jurisdiction from other states to purchase
marijuana products and traveling back to
home states. Seeing more cases of edibles,
waxes, oils, food products being transported
as well.
No known Colorado marijuana being in the Colony,

KS area.
Based off of the packaging the marijuana was found
From what we can actually confirm, there has not We have received information that there are
in, along with suspect's admission that it was from the been that much of an effect in our jurisdiction
subjects in our jurisdiction that receive
State of Colorado
marijuana from Colorado, but we have been
unable to obtain enough information that
would confirm that.
Case one, the two suspects admitted it and in case

two, it was labeled from Colorado.
Minor
not sure - can't prove any effect
Execution of search warrant at a residence in Council

Grove during which an empty container Labeled
'StarBuds', 1640 E. Evans, Denver, Co, 80210 was
recovered. In addition to lot and batch numbers, the
container was marked 'Purple Haze', the weight, and
the date of sale; 1/22-2015
Little overall impact at the present time.
Open to suggestion.
Office/Agency
Seizures
Cowley County Sheriffs

Department
Four
Three

no

no

products
yes
Overall effect
In an arrest in Jan. 2015 the marijuana was in bottles I speculate there are more marijuana cases in our
that were labeled. The labels stated the marijuana
jurisdiction containing Colorado marijuana.
was grown by the Mile High Recreation in Colorado.
During a search warrant in April, 2015 officers found
marijuana wax. There was a lot of literature found in
the house from marijuana parties in Colorado. During
an arrest in May, 2015 the girlfriend of the suspect
told officers the suspect suffers from PTSD which he
controls with marijuana. She told officers all the
marijuana and paraphernalia found were the suspect
brought with him from Colorado because it was legal
to buy it and he could get bigger quantities there. I
am unsure of circumstances of the fourth arrest in
January, 2016. The arresting officer told me the driver
had Colorado marijuana on him when arrested.
Crawford County Sheriff's

Office
Decatur Co. S.O.
no
no
no
yes
Delphos Police Department
no
no
no
Derby Police Department
no
no
no
Dickinson County Sheriff's

Department
20
no
yes
Candies, drinks, consumable food

(cookies, brownies....etc.)
yes
Waxes/oils are being used more We were told by the subject at the time of the arrest
due to the high THC content.
where he was coming from and where he purchased
the marijuana.
yes
Gummy bears, brownies and

marijuana cookies have been
found here.
yes
Marijuana oils and concentrated Due to street level intelligence given to our detectives The availability of marijuana has drastically
extracts such as wax and shatter and officers. People say this marijuana is very easy to increased.
have been found here.
get and is a short drive away. The overall appearance
of the marijuana from Colorado is much different than
marijuana that comes from Mexico.
Dodge City Police

Department
1 unable to state
yes
Doniphan County Sheriff

Department
no
Douglas County Sheriff's

Office
yes
Douglass USD396 PD
Dwight D. Eisenhower
National Airort Police and
Fire-City of Wichita
Edwards County Sheriff
Edwardsville Police
Department
0
0
0
0
1
0
1
0
The best guess of our narcotics detectives is

that approximately 90% of all marijuana
seized here comes from Colorado. This is
based on street level intelligence and
logistics.
no
by word of mouth there is a
serious problem with Colorado
Marijuana coming into Kansas.
We have not seen it in the arrests
we make.
no
most of the marijuana coming thru our Co. comes

from the south by way of US 83 The
recreational marijuana comes from Colorado
It is often difficult to determine the origin of

illegal drugs; particularly marijuana. This is
compounded by the fact that often times the
person arrested is not the person who made
the original purchase.
no
no
yes
yes
no
no
no
no
no
no
N/A
no
no
no
no
no
no
N/A
Marijuana has always been a problem in

Lawrence and Douglas County, with most
people thinking it is due to 'College Kids.' As
this may be an accurate statement in some
degree, marijuana is not specific to just
'College Kids.' Marijuana use and distribution
has evolved and increased tremendously over
the past several years, and is being used by
High School and Middle School students on a
daily basis. A large portion of this marijuana
is brought in from Colorado, and this
statement can be supported by the fact that
marijuana grow operations are almost nonexistent. Additional supporting facts are the
potency of THC from elaborate indoor
marijuana grows and the availability of
edibles. Another problem facing this
community due to legalization of marijuana in
Colorado is the increase of home invasion
robberies, where subjects have traveled to
Colorado to pick up marijuana and have
distributed, leaving them with a large amount
of cash. Subjects will often times learn of
travel plans to bring marijuana back, and will
conduct these robberies after the marijuana
has been sold. These robberies have resulted
in shootings and danger to public safety.

There have been reports about a local car
dealership transporting marijuana from
Colorado. The owners son is said to be using
car off the lot to make trips to Colorado and
bring back large quantities of marijuana. It
has only been reports so far, there hasn't
been any evidence to show this is occurring.
Marijuana wax is popular right Through the course of long term investigations and
now for several reasons. It's
interviews it was determined the supply was coming
easy to conceal and easy to use. from Colorado.
Often times this is what is being
used by the College, High
School and Middle School kids.
Additionally, this is very
common with E-Cigs and is
being smoked in public where
unknowing citizens are being
subjected to the use.
It has become a bigger problem and is being found Request agencies to provide information of
more frequently as more and more people are
the origination of the marijuana seized and
going to Colorado and purchasing it and
report to the A.G's office annually.
transporting it across the country on the highways.
Our county is in the far northeast corner of Kansas

and we have not been affected by the colorado
marijuana.
It has increased the use of marijuana in this
community because it is a quick turn around time
for re-supply and re-sale. Most of the subjects that
are traveling to Colorado to get marijuana are not
getting small amounts. They are getting a large
amount to distribute in this community.
no incidents
N/A
minor
We surveyed our officers and they reported they
have not seen any effect overall from Colorado
marijuana.
The most notable impact that marijuana

legalization has had is the increase of other
drugs such as heroin and
methamphetamines. Subjects will often
times travel to Colorado to get re-supplied
marijuana from the same subjects that are
dealing other illicit drugs.
We have not ran into Colorado marijuana

here at the airport.
The Edwardsville Police Department has not

come into contact with anyone claiming to
possess Colorado marijuana.
Office/Agency
Seizures
El Dorado Police
Department
El Dorado School Police
Department
no
yes
no
Two arrests at my school for possession of

marijuana involved marijuana that did not
appear to be street marijuana. One juvenile
admitted it was store bought marijuana
no
no
7 cases, both possession and distribution.
yes
2 cases
yes
When executing a search warrant

Officers found several containers
of marijuana along with receipts
from various stores in Colorado
along with several types of edible
marijuana with receipts from
store in Colorado. On another
occasion a suspect told us he
purchased his marijuana in
Colorado.
no
Elk County Sheriff's Office
Ellis County Sheriff's Office
45
yes
no
yes
11
11
no
no
Ellis Police Department
Ellsworth County Sheriff's

Office
Ellsworth Police
Department
Elwood Police Department

products
no
Overall effect
One juvenile told me it was legally bought marijuana, I believe it is easier to have someone buy the
but refused the source of the product. The other
marijuana legally in Colorado and that makes it
juvenile arrest the marijuana was in a form that does more available in Kansas to our youth
not appear in street purchased marijuana
1 case of marijuana oil. This

agency is aware however that
there is becoming a larger
presence of marijuana oil and
waxes present in this area.
The persons involved have directly stated that the

marijuana that they have possessed had been
obtained from Colorado.
The legalization of marijuana in Colorado has had a

direct effect in the cases worked by this agency.
Although marijuana has been present in this area
for some time, the legalization in Colorado has
made marijuana more prevalent in this area as it
has become easier to acquire for persons both
using and distributing marijuana locally.
Details in letter. Among other things, they

have seen investigations where persons have
used alterate ID's to circumvent Colorado's
law and buy more than the legal amount in
Colorado.
There has been an increase of Marijuana and

marijuana products in the area.
28 arrests
direction of travel and weight of product
no
Emporia Police Department 50+ cases. Our

Narcotics units
advised the
quality of
marijuana is higher
and the dopers are
proud of it since
Colorado passed
their law. The
narcotics unit
advised they believe
the marijuana
collected in 2015 is
almost all from
Colorado though in
some instances they
cannot prove it. The
50+ estimate (over
2 years) is
conservative and
does not include
juvenile stats.
20+ There is no way to know how

many impaired people have
been arrested after smoking
marijuana specifically from
Colorado but if most of the
marijuana we find is from
Colorado then most of those
impaired while smoking marijuana
will have smoked Colorado weed.
yes
no
no
At least 8-10 cases at the local high
school/middle school involving the flavored
marijuana fluids and vapor cigarettes. These
are almost odorless and must taste good. Like
the gummies and other edibles they are very
attractive to the young. No data was kept
that shows these fluids came from Colorado
but this would be the nearest source for the
Marijuana edibles and flavored vapor smokes.
In addition, 10+ cases where a car stop is
made or juveniles contacted and in
possession of marijuana.
yes
Based on the grade of the marijuana and

marking/packaging are from Colorado
no
Gummy worms, gummy bears,
lollipops, rock candy, cereals,
candy bars, snack bars etc. All are
packaged to resemble candy or
cereal. I would not know the
difference at a glance if they were
next to candy/cereal on a store
shelf.
yes
Emporia State Police
no
no
No
Erie Police Department

Fairway Police Department
0
0
0
0
no
no
no
no
no
no
We've seen an increase in Colorado marijuana but

not on a high scale.
There are three intersecting highways, 156,

14 and 40/140 around Ellsworth that all
connect or are close to interstate 70.
Low to none
About 10 instances of Various
waxes and oils. Also flavored
marijuana fluids that can be put
into the vapor cigarettes.
Persons arrested may brag or say the marijuana was

brought from Colorado. Markings on packaging
indicate from Colorado. (these markings are on
wrappers, on pill bottles, and in some instances on
labels on sealed bags that name the brand of
marijuana, amount, etc.
see question 8
Minimal. Although there are rumors that some of

this product is being purchased 'legally' in CO and
transported into KS, our officers have not be able to
verify the point of origination.
We have a substantial migrant population

from Mexico and further south. It is likely
that some of our marijuana, especially in
these populations, may still be be brought in
from there or elsewhere. This marijuana
seems to be lower quality, more plainly
packaged, and does not include edibles, etc.
Office/Agency
Seizures
Finney County Sheriff's

Office
I estimate
I estimate approximately 51
approximately 45
arrests with the majority of those
seizures since 2014. arrests coming from persons using
Marijuana.
Florence, Kansas
Ford County Sheriff's Office
Frankfort Police Dept

Franklin County Sheriff's
Office/Franklin County
Drug Enforcement Unit
0
16
yes
Several juveniles have been arrested with

ounce quantities of Marijuana in this
jurisdiction and they were involved in the
distribution of Marijuana to other juveniles.

yes
0
19
no
yes
no
no
no
yes
none
Frontenac Police
Department
Ft Hays State University
Police Department
none
The marijuana was in a container, that had a

label with the marijuana distributer's name
and address out of Colorado.
no
yes
We have located Marijuana

edibles to include, THC infused
chocolate bars, peanut-butter
cookies, sour candy, caramel
suckers, watermelon candy, and
THC oils. The majority of the
seizures of the edibles are in
conjunction with search warrants
related to drug sales.
The marijuana edibles were in a

package with a label that had the
marijuana distributer's name and
address out of Colorado. Also
located receipts for the edibles.
Suspects were found to selling

candies, suckers and gummies
that contained THC. The
product's were labeled from
Colorado companies selling them
legally in their state.

products
yes
no
yes
no
yes
Approximately 1 pound of
Marijuana wax was interdicted
on 01/12/2016 from a bus from
Colorado that was passing
through our jurisdiction.
Overall effect
I believe that the Marijuana that we have seized is

from Colorado based on multiple admissions from
suspects along with several other factors. This agency
rarely finds any of the compressed brick Marijuana
that was historically attributed to Mexico. The
Marijuana that is located now is usually in the form of
the high potency Marijuana buds associated with the
Medical Marijuana from Colorado dispensaries.
Packaging from dispensaries is often located in our
jurisdiction. Several subjects admitted to purchasing
Marijuana in Colorado from subjects directly instead
of dispensaries (claimed to have purchased excess
from growers).
I feel that the legalization of Marijuana in Colorado Through interviews of those arrested, it is
has increased the amount of Marijuana in my
common for them to state that the
jurisdiction. I also feel that it has increased the
Marijuana is from Colorado.
amount of dealers as now anyone can travel to
Colorado and purchase Marijuana and return to
Kansas and sell the Marijuana at a substantial
profit. The numbers I listed for arrests and seizures
do not include the stats for the Garden City Police
Department, as they will submit numbers also that
include the local drug task force stats.
The marijuana waxes were in a With the cases of marijuana form Colorado,
package with a label that had
containers had labels with addresses and name on
the marijuana distributer's
them from Colorado.
name and address out of
Colorado. Also located receipts
for the waxes.
Suspects were found to be

selling marijuana wax and high
grade marijuana that originated
from Colorado. The suspects
were receiving packages
through the US mail that
contained these products.
During the investigation of these drug violations, it

was found that labeling on the products indicated
that they were sold in the State of Colorado. One of
the cases involved a traffic stop where the driver was
traveling from Colorado to the Kansas City area with
marijuana products.
none
We believe that at least half of the marijuana
seizures in our jurisdiction originate from Colorado,
including other states that have legalized
marijuana. The cost of high grade Colorado
marijuana is also driving up the burglary, thefts and
financial crimes due to users trying to afford it.
N/A
no
no
no
N/A
10
no
no
no
When seized, suspect said it was from Colorado or the Many students think that because it is legal in
suspect was from Colorado or a nearby bordering
Colorado it is legal in Kansas, they also think that
county.
medical marijuana from Colorado is legal as well.
Galena Police Department
no
no
no
Garden City Community

College Police Department
yes
One incident in our jurisdiction involving 3

juveniles & 2 adults. One of the individuals
admitted the marijuana originated in
Colorado.
no
no
Garden City Police

Department
Approximately 552
arrests have been
made for marijuana
possession or
distribution from
January 1, 2014 to
December 31, 2015.
This question is impossible to

answer with any degree of
accuracy as our department does
not differentiate DUI arrests as to
whether the person was under the
influence of alcohol or specific
drug.
yes
Approximately 74 juveniles have been

arrested for possession of distribution of
marijuana between January 1, 2014 to
December 31, 2015. As a member of our local
drug task force for approximately the past 19
years, marijuana usage by juveniles have
always been common, however, it does
appear more juveniles are using the drug with
little fear of its consequences either legally or
physically.
yes
Garden Plain Police

Department
None
None
no
no
Our department does not track

cases specifically describing THC
edibles. However, I have
observed on at least 10 cases
where small amounts of such
products have been seized to
include THC chocolates, fudge,
hard candies and oils. With each
of theses cases, the products
were labeled in such a way that it
suggested it was purchased from
a Colorado marijuana dispensary.
yes
no
N/A
Short of catching a suspect who is crossing
the border with it, or they tell law
enforcement where they obtained their
marijuana, it will be difficult to determine
the product came from for most agencies.
Have not had it show up in our jurisdiction yet.
Again, our department has

received seized small amounts
of wax and THC oil, but it
does not appear to be
commonplace as of yet. I have
not had heard of any incidents
where the wax or THC oil were
manufactured locally and is
suspected to have originated in
Colorado dispensaries.
Persons involved provided information. Also, during

another incident the marijuana was inside a
commercial Colorado marijuana container.
We have experienced an increase of marijuana use

since 1/1/2014. Our PD and surrounding law
enforcement agencies are increasing efforts to
educate and enforce laws-K9 sweeps.
I would recommend that a confidential

survey be conducted on college campuses
(State wide) to determine the impact from
the students point of view. Many students
support law enforcement's efforts to deter
use.
Prior to the influx of Colorado marijuana, virtually all

of the marijuana seized in our jurisdiction was
compressed marijuana referred to by locals as
reggie with Mexican origins. This type of marijuana
is rarely seen any longer in our jurisdiction and
virtually all the marijuana seen here are from
Colorado either legally from dispensaries or
underground black market sources. From multiple
interviews with persons arrested with marijuana, I
have learned that few users desire reggie marijuana
as Colorado marijuana is much more potent. One user
in particular described how he could get a better and
longer high from one cigarette of Colorado marijuana
than from an entire quarter sack (7 grams) of
reggie. In the past two years, I have not heard of
any marijuana suppliers obtaining marijuana from any
other sources other than what originated in Colorado.
For one, I believe the legalization of Colorado

marijuana has made it much more accessible in our
jurisdiction. One can drive from Garden City to
Denver in a few hours and easily and legally
purchase up to one ounce of marijuana. From
interviews with users, a full ounce of Colorado
marijuana is considered a very large amount.
Colorado marijuana on the streets of our city is
typically distributed to users in one gram
quantities. I also believe the legalization of the drug
has removed much of the legal stigma against the
drug and it has become much more socially
accepted and the numbers of our youth who smoke
marijuana is ever increasing. Furthermore, it has led
to a dramatic increase in marijuana distribution
attributed to its easy accessibility. Persons wishing
to distribute marijuana find it very profitable. A
legal purchase of marijuana from a dispensary in
Colorado can be obtained for as little as $100.
Selling it by the gram in Garden City for $20 each, a
dealer can profit around $460 for each ounce. Prior
to the easy accessibility in Colorado, dealers would
have to have a connect in the black market to
obtain marijuana from Mexican origin sources thus
the numbers of distributors were not nearly as high
as they are now.
Again, as described above, the legalization of

marijuana in Colorado has greatly increased
the number of both users and dealers in our
jurisdiction. It has created an atmosphere
that the drug is harmless and in fact should
be legalized in Kansas. Though I am not
under the illusion it is as harmful as
methamphetamine, it is still detrimental to
the safety of our community, especially
considering how more potent the drug in
now compared to marijuana from the past.
Furthermore, from years of enforcing drug
crimes in our community, it is commonly
known that todays marijuana dealers are
tomorrows meth dealers.
Office/Agency
Seizures
Gardner Police Dpartment
2 to 3
Garnett Police Department

Geary County Sheriff's
Department

2 unknown

no

products
yes

In 2014, we made 80 marijuana arrests and
seizures of at least a small amount of
marijuana. Of the 80 arrests, 11 were
juveniles. In 2015, we made 133 marijuana
arrests and seziures, with 21 being juveniles.
While we do try to obtain information on the
origins of the marijuana seized, few arrestees
are forthcoming with that information. We
do not usually document state of origin,
presumed or otherwise, in our police reports.
5
Approximately 25 to 30 of the cases were
large amounts heading from Colorado to
other locations for the purpose of
distribution.
0
no
no
no
no
no
no
Goddard Police
Department
Goddard USD 265 Police
Department
The Goodland
Police Department
has had six (6)
seizures of
marijuana that
more than likely
came from
Colorado.
Gove County Sheriff's

Office
3 small incidents minor amounts
Graham County Sheriff's

Office
3 est
Grandview Plaza PD
no
no
yes
In two recent cases in the past The two instances referred to earlier involved wax.
year wax was involved and
We had no prior contact with was in school related
presumed to have originated in arrests until after Colorado legalization - just a guess.
Colorado.
Our opinion is that use, especially among teens has

increased.
no
no
yes
The Goodland Police

Department encountered THC
wax (Wax Gold) on September
28, 2015. This was discovered
on a traffic stop where
marijuana was located.
The Goodland Police Department has not noted any N/A

exceptional difference in the amount of marijuana
cases worked since January 1, 2014 than there were
before that date.
No
no
Yes
Search Warrant for home grown The label on the bottles showed they came from the
marijuana revealed a can of wax Denver area
from Colorado as well as more
than 100 empty containers used
to hold Colorado marijuana
10
no
no
no
Persons stated they had prescriptions for medicinal

purposes from the state of Colorado or were coming
from Colorado
In general, a portion of the public feels it is only a

matter of time before Kansas legalizes marijuana.
They believe it to be sooner than later since a
neighboring state has done it and this gives them a
sense of justification for using/possessing it.
no
no
no
Quality of the product that was seized.
We have seen a few more cases because of the

legalization. Most has been in the younger adults.
10 to 11
Gray County Sheriff Dept
10
yes
Marijuana was either in containers identifying the

source or the grade of marijuana was recognized as
Methamphetamine, Cocaine, LSD and Heroin have

become more available because of the legalization
of Marijuana making it a extremely negative impact
in our jurisdiction.
no
no
no
Because of hybrid appearance, we suspect the

marijuana may have come from Colorado
The Great Bend Police Department cannot say that

Colorado marijuana has become an issue here.
None
yes
The Goodland Police Department

has had no arrests made in its
jurisdiction since January 1, 2014,
involving a person suspected of
being impaired as the result of
using Colorado marijuana.
10
88
5 to 6 (estimate)
no
I know it's here but we were unable to show that

the marijuana came from Colorado. I hope we as a
State don't go towards this.
Has not shown an affect yet.
no
0 Unknown
Goodland Police
Department
Great Bend Police

Department
Overall effect
A definite challenge. Colorado is a ready source for
dealers to go shop for their marijuana, and just a
few hours away from Kansas. When dealers can go
to retail shops, instead of having to deal with other
drug dealers in compromising locations and
circumstances, the Colorado choice is by far the
easiest decision to make.
Approximately 100
cases
Geneseo Police
Department
Girard Police Department
Grant County Sheriff's

Office
one case of wax being seized.

Marijuana seized was packaged in containers with
Cannot be certain it came from specific product names for different strengths. It is my
Colorado.
understanding that this is commonplace in Colorado
marijuana and not seen much here otherwise.
From January 1, 2014 until now approximately

20 juvenile arrests have been made involving
marijuana and/or paraphernalia. In a couple
of instances through conversation Colorado
was mentioned as the source of the
substance
Several High School aged kids have been

taken into custody for the Poss. of Marijuana
yes
Popcorn, candy bars and spices
yes
wax has been found a couple

times
The Goodland Police Department believes that the six

(6) seizures referred to in this document came from
Colorado because there was a direct link to Colorado
and the suspect by either place of residence or last
record of employment.
No drastic impact compared to previous years,

however it is the location of choice for marijuana
users
Greensburg Police
Department
Greenwood County
Sheriff's Office
no
no
No
N/A
no
no
no
From November 2014- to December 2014 an

Overall, as far east as we are, we have not seen a
investigation took place in regards to the selling of
huge effect from the legalization.
Marijuana. Several controlled buys were conducted
and it was determined the marijuana was bought in
Colorado and transported back to Greenwood County
to distribute.
Halstead Police
Department
Harper Police Department
no
no
no
yes
no
no
N/A
Office/Agency
Seizures
Harvey County Sheriff
91 (estimate)
Haskell County Sheriff's

Office
Havensville Police
Department
Hays Police Department

products
Overall effect
interviews of drivers and passengers
Since the legalization in Colorado, we have certainly I must make sure it is understood that these
seen an uptick in drug cases at the Harvey County numbers are only estimates and not backed
Sheriff's Office and greater seizure of drugs. In
by true statistical data.
March of 2015, we put together a special Task
Force, Safe Highway and Roads Initiative (SHARI).
SHARI was responsible for 32 traffic stops; the vast
marjority of them involved the transportation of
drugs with Colorado connections. The legalization
from Colorado has also provided the Harvey County
Sheriff's Office with cash and vehicles through
successful forfeiture cases. The results of the
foreitures have provided the Sheriff's Office with
needed equipment (in car cameras, MDT's, training,
flashlights, and other equipment that was not
supported by the yearly Sheriff's budget).
no
ues
candy, lollipops, and cookies
yes
wax and oil
no
yes
Both KHP stops- Gummies,

Suckers, Etc.
Yes
Got ear wax both locally and off Marijuana is being seized with dispensary labels on
traffic stops.
packaging.
We have had six (6) incidents

where we had marijuana edibles
in the form of candy, gummies, &
brownies.
yes
27
0
We have evidence
that 60 seizures
were Colorado
marijuana.
91
0
We have evidence that 70 of the
518 marijuana arrests involved
Colorado marijuana.
no
yes
no
no
We have had four (4) incidents where we
have evidence that someone had obtain
marijuana in Colorado and then supplied it to
juveniles in Hays, Ks. I am confident that this
number is much higher but we do not track
this data.
yes
Haysville Police
Department
Herington Police
Department
Hesston Police Department
no
no
yes
yes
Hiawatha Police
Department
no
no
no
no
Edible cookies in possession of an

adult and a juvenile. They were
in packaging indicating a legal
sale from Colorado.
Seen increase in cases. Officers have to keep up

with new trends and products, so they know what
to look for.
These are combined statistics of both the

Haskell County Sheriff's Office as well as KHP
arrests within Haskell County. Statistics were
gathered utilizing jail logs as well as meeting
with prosecuting attorney's office to attempt
to get the most accurate data.
None
We have had three (3) incidents I believe that the marijuana in these cases was
that involved oils.
Colorado marijuana because the suspect(s) would
either state that they got the marijuana in Colorado,
they were from Colorado, or they had Colorado tags.
Listed below are the Case #s, number of arrests, and
why we believe that it is Colorado marijuana. We have
the data in an excel sheet.
I believe that the legalization of marijuana in

NA
Colorado has increased the availability and given
our community easier access to the drug. While our
marijuana arrests by the Hays Police Department
are only up slightly (compared to the previous two
(2) years), I believe that this is due to the change in
case law surrounding vehicles inventories and to
our Patrol Division operating with 20%+ less
manpower (unable to fill slots with qualified
applicants). One of the biggest concerns I have is
the use of candies and edibles to target the youth
in our community in an effort to get them to
become users of marijuana. The edibles and the
oils also make it harder to identify that the item is
contraband, and as a results officers may miss the
marijuana during the search.
no
14-31441 arrest - purchased the marijuana in

Colorado
14-88371 arrest - said the marijuana was from
Colorado
14-89991 arrest - Colorado tag - had medical
marijuana registry - cannabis oil
14-10052 2 arrests - were from Colorado - Colorado
tag
14-10555 2 arrests - purchased the marijuana in
Colorado
14-11878 1 arrest - got the marijuana in Colorado
14-12022 1 arrest - purchased the marijuana in
Colorado - included edibles
14-13099 1 arrest - got the marijuana in Colorado
14-13735 1 arrest - Colorado tag - didn't say if the
marijuana came from Colorado
14-16811 2 arrests - got the marijuana in Colorado
14-16894 no arrest - suspect from Colorado
14-17007 1 arrest - from Colorado
14-18401 1 arrest - purchased the marijuana in
Colorado
14-19032 1 arrest - from Colorado
14-19559
no arrest
- suspects
Colorado
On
09/10/2014
officers
found from
an adult
male and an
We have not really seen any significant problem

adult female in one of our parks after hours. Both
within our jurisdiction.
were in a car with valid Colorado plates. They had
stopped to sleep and get 'high'. Our K-9 officer used
his dog to search the vehicle with the owners consent.
The dog did locate marijuana in the vehicle. The
female claimed ownership of the marijuana. She told
officers she had purchased the drugs in Colorado prior
to their trip to our jurisdiction to see her mother.
Besides her confession, officers noted there were
three bottles of marijuana. All three bottles were the
same type however; the packaging is not commonly
used in our area. Our K-9 officer is familiar with the
packaging used to purchase marijuana in Colorado.
He said all of the packaging was consistent with how
licensed marijuana shops in Colorado sell it.
I think this method of information gathering

is a very good way to gage the problem.
n/a
Marijuana Arrests:
2012-223
2013-284
2014-274
2015-244
no
n/a
n/a
yes
Packaging and labeling form Colorado distribution

stores.
It his contributed to slightly increase the drug usage

and possession in my jurisdiction
no
n/a
n/a
n/a
Office/Agency
Seizures

0
Hillsboro Police
Department
Hoisington Police
Department
no
no
no
yes
Dring a resent search warrant juveniles were

found in the house where Marijuana and
Hash were being used.
no
Yes
Holcomb Police
Department
yes
Been told by suspects they are making trips

to Colorado for the purchase of Marijuana.
Juveniles have stated they have friends that
are adults going to Colorado and bringing the
Marijuana back and giving them the
marijuana.
no
no
Holton Police Dept.

Howard Police Dept.
Hoyt Police Dept.
Hugoton Police
Department
0
0
0
3
0
0
0
5
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
No
no
no
Humbolt Police
Department
Inman Police Department
Iola Police Department
2 unknown
Iowa Tribal Police

Department
Jackson County Sheriff
Jefferson County Sheriff's

Office
Jewell County Sheriff's
Office
Johnson County
Community College Police
Department
Johnson County Park Police
Department
Johnson County Sheriff's
Estimated 12
Office
2
0
1
Junction City Police

Department
Kansas City Kansas
Community College Police
Department
Kansas City, Ks. Police
Department / Narcotics
Unit
Estimated - 70
no
Overall effect
Very minimal if any

no overall effect
Both Marijuana and Hash oils.
Some of the bottles found in the house during the

search had lables on them showing they came from
Colorado.
Just the one incident.
N/A
The suspects have admitted to purchasing the

marijuana in Colorado and brining it back.
We have seen an increase in the marijuana cases.
All of our suspects are admitting to us they

are purchasing the marijuana in Colorado.
We are only about 70 miles from the
Colorado border and therefore it had made it
easier for the suspects to go to Colorado for
the purchase of the Marijuana.
N/A
No direct contact/cases
None existent
Since our jurisdiction is so close to Colorado, we
have had Marijuana coming from Colorado long
before it was 'legalized.' There may be a slight
increase but nothing significant.
N/A
At this point we have only been able to attribute

two cases involving CO Marijuana. For our
jurisdiction I think the impact of CO marijuana has
been minimal at this point.
Case Numbers for the mentioned cases:

IPD15-1430 AND IPD16-0187
Suspect stated where Marijuana came from.
no
no
no
yes
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
yes
We have encountered THC-laced

edibles at least twice that were
yes
We have encountered this at

least once.
In almost each of our cases, the defendant has

It has had an impact based on our contacts. The
indicated the marijuana was obtained from Colorado. small amount of interactions we have had and the
general response of the subject making a legal
purchase leads us to believe there are many others
that have a similar belief that we are not
contacting.
not on any
of my cases
yes
probably of my cases also

involved edibles.
yes
probably of my cases also

involved edibles.
Subjects stated either going to or coming from

Colorado
It has affected us in a very negative manner.
no
no
no
yes
Subjects that were arrested gave an admission that

items were purchased in Colorado.
Legalization of marijuana has negatively affected

Subjectively the legalization of marijuana in
our jurisdiction. By our estimates marijuana arrests Colorado has increased resistance when
have increased by 10%.
confronted by officers. The legalization has
lead to the acceptance of marijuana, which
increases the usage of marijuana by
teenagers.
Approximately 53
no
yes
Estimated 10
Approximately 90
no

products
no
Hill City Police Department
Estimated - 10
IPD has had two different cases involving the

same juvenile for possession and distribution.
One of the previous mentioned Detectives that had interviewed individuals involved
cases, had a small amount of
in the cases told them that they got the marijuana in
wax that was located.
CO
We havent had any drug cases from January

2014 to date.
Car Stop- driver was from Colorado and moving to
Little or none
Kansas. Driver stated that he bought marijuana in
Colorado before traveling to Kansas and that all of the
marijuana in the car was from Colorado.
no
N//A
N/A
N/A
N/A
No effect.
N/A
no
During several car stops edibles

have been recovered. Items
seized Gummies, Suckers &
Chocolates.
no
Kansas Department of
Labor Criminal Investigative
Division
KCK Public Schools PD
Kearny County Sheriff's
Office
no
no
no
0
5
0
2
no
no
no
no
no
no
Kechi Police Department
no
no
no
Colorado packaging
no effect
I am confident that we would be finding more if we
were able to devote more time. Our sex abuses
cases were up during this period causing personnel
to be unable to pursue drug investigations as we
would like.
None
Office/Agency
Seizures
Kincaid Police Department None by this

department
Kingman County Sheriff's

Office
Kingman Police
Department
Kiowa County Sheriff's

Office
no
no
17
18
yes
yes
Colorado marijuana has been found in 4
juvenile cases.
yes
yes
One or two.

no
20
KS Dept of Revenue Office

of Special Investigations
KS Dept of Wildlife, Parks
and Tourism
None by this department
One or two
no
no
no
yes

products
no
Identification of the product(s)

made.
One case involved 'gummy'
candies containing Colorado
marijuana.

To my knowledge it has affected our
community very little if any but Kincaid is
small and we were without an officer for
some time and have only had the police
department back for less then a year in
which time the Anderson County Sheriff
covered Kincaid.
no
Very strong smell, persons coming from the west.
no
We discovered the marijuana was from Colorado

based on suspect statements, witness statements,
and marijuana packaging.

created an environment where marijuana is easier
to obtain.
Interviews have revealed that a majority of the users

in Kiowa County have gone to Colorado to purchase
marijuana at one time or another. Comments have
been made in reference to the higher THC levels in
marijuana purchased from Colorado.
Although we may not have seen an abundance of

new cases as related to the legalization of
marijuana in Colorado, Kiowa County Sheriff
Officers have dealt with other effects of
legalization. Kiowa County Sheriff Office resources
have been utilized in the tracking and locating of
mental health patients, as well as juvenile
runaways, who have absconded to Colorado for the
sole purposes of purchasing and using marijuana
legally.
The Sheriff Office has not seen a dramatic

increase in the number of consumers of
illegal marijauana, but have seen the effects
of the increased price of purchasing
marijuana from Colorado as opposed to prior
to legalization. The cost of "legal" marijuana
in Colorado is reportedly more expensive
than illegally obtained marijuana and the
consumers are having to obtain a higher
amount of currency to purchase it.
NA
NA
NA
The processed products were labeled as products

from Colorado.
There has been an increase in products specifically

Maintain emphasis on determining the

source of marijuana and related products.
We have seen marijuana candy,

marijuana drinks and other foods
containing marijuana. The
increase in ingestion methods,
also means an increase in testing
cost.
no
In one case the product was

brownies and labeled as being
from Colorado.
Overall effect
To my knowledge it has affected our small
community very little if any
yes
Product seized was made from

oil and labeled as a product
produced in Colorado.
La Cygne Police
Department
Labette County Sheriff's
Dept.
Lake Quivira Police Dept
Lane County Sheriff
no
no
no
N/A
None
N/A
no
nn
no
nothing
nothing
nothing
0
7
0
7
no
no
no
yes
no
no
N/A
It was not Mexican brick weed. Subjects from
Colorado.
No effect observed.
no change
Lansing Police Department
no
no
no
Larned, KS Police
Department
yes
While working the scene of a suicide of an

adult male evidence was found that he was
getting marijuana from a friend who was from
our area that had moved to Colorado. IT was
also apparent from intel received and a
ledger that local kids were frequenting this
subjects home.
no
No
yes
While it is difficult to quantify the exact

amounts of Marijuana from Colorado, I
believe we have seen an increase in the
amounts of Marijuana and Marijuana
products that are being brought into our
jurisdiction since the legalization in Colorado.
no
yes
no
no
Lawrence Kansas Police

Department
Leavenworth Co. Sheriff
16 seizures that
8 arrests
were articulated to
be Colorado
Marijuana
no
pot brownies
A diary of an adult deceased male (suicide) indicated Lots of verbal information (intel) being received
he owed money to an acquaintance who had moved that local users buy marijuana from local residents
to Colorado and high grade marijuana was located in a who make periodic trips to Colorado.
locked box kept in the decedents refrigerator. Also
neighbors reported a high volume of traffic (juveniles)
coming and going from the decedents home.
We are seeing an increase in

Marijuana 'Budder', Hash Oil,
and wax.
All information in reference to the origin of the

Marijuana in the cases we found was gained through
interview of the subjects involved.
Our drug unit investigators report a dramatic

increase in Marijuana from Colorado in our
jurisdiction since the legalization of Marijuana in
Colorado.
The Leavenworth County Sheriffs Office has no

information to provide in reference to the survey
about Colorado marijuana. We have had no contact
with or arrests of anyone in possession of
marijuana from Colorado. We are not aware of any
Colorado marijuana found in our jurisdiction. At this
point, we cant say there has been any effect of
Colorado marijuana in our jurisdiction.
Even though we haven't recovered a lot of

marijuana that can be shown to come
directly from Colorado, the word on the
street is that there is a flow from that State
to ours, making it to our area. I believe that
States are selling out and giving up on the
war on drugs to get money for failing
budgets. There seems to be a shift in how
the drug itself is viewed by the newer
generation, equating the drug to being
harmless as having a beer. Those of us in this
profession know it is a gateway drug and it
should be viewed and enforced as such. This
trend of legalizing vices is not a good thing!
Office/Agency
Seizures
Leawood Police
Department
Lebo Police Department

Lenexa Police Department
Lewis Police Department
no
yes
no
no

products
One incident in which the subject

had possession of cannabisinfused lip balm, the container of
which had the web address of
maryjanemedicinals.com and the
disclaimer 'This product is
unlawful outside Colorado and is
intended for use by MMJ patients
or adults over 21. Keep out of
reach of children'.
no

Must of the suspects won't say were they got
it. If an unknown option would have been
added to each questions that would have
been how I answered it.
no
(Case details in letter). While these are just
several documented cases, we are confident
that the vast majority of the marijuana we
are seizing is from Colorado. While our
reporting system doesn't have any sort of
tracking mechanism, our officers are
reporting that their arrestees are frequently
admitting their marijuana is from Colorado.
Furthermore, since the Colorado law change
in 2014 we are consistently seeing higher
grade marijuana. Prior to 2014, it was
somewhat uncommon to find a lot of "high
grade" marijuana. We know from training
and experience that the Colorado marijuana
farms can create a marijuana bud with a
much higher THC content, which is preferred
by the users.
no
no
no
It has not changed very much. This is an Agricultural

community, mostly have difficulty tracking current
field(s) people are growing their own.
When suspects are interviewed, Officers and being
told that the majority of marijuana is coming from
Colorado. This has occurred on numerous occasions
and is common among the current users and dealers
of marijuana in Liberal Ks. Suspects are advising that
they travel to Colorado and purchase the marijuana
from dispensaries and other local sources.
17
no
Lindsborg Police
Department
yes
Linn County Sheriff
Little River Police

Department
Logan County Sheriff
Lyndon Police Department
Overall effect
7 confirmed
Liberal Police Department
Lincoln County Sheriff's

Office
Label on product (lip balm) indicating the product was Minimal.

from Colorado.
yes
We have had two separate incidents where

juveniles were found in possession of
marijuana we suspected of coming from
Colorado.
no
In a whole, within Liberal Kansas, we are mostly

dealing with Colorado marijuana. Since the
legalization in Colorado occurred we are not
generally seeing marijuana come from sources
other than Colorado. We seize it in small and large
quantities; larger seizures are being made with
vacuum sealed bags. The bags are written upon
proclaiming the strain and weights of the product.
Marijuana coming from Colorado is dubbed

as some of the best. Users and dealers of
the drug are impressed with the quality.
With increased quality, increased amounts of
THC are also produced, causing a greater
high. As the quality of marijuana increases,
the use of it rises as well.
Any legalization of marijauana in my jurisdiction has All Colorado marijuana seizures in my

some kind of impact.
jurisdiction were taken by KHP unites on I-70
no
no
Either the suspect stated it came from Colorado or

the packaging was similar to packaging used in the
sale of Colorado marijuana.
I am unsure if it has increased marijuana usage in

our area but it is certainly a higher grade of what
we had been seeing in the past.
no
no
no
Marijuana was found in possession of an individual

from Colorado that was visiting relatives locally.
minimal
no
no
no
None so far. Town about 500 people
no
no
no
No change in effect has been observed in our

Jurisdiction so far
10
Just because we have had no contact with

those who may possess Colorado Marijuana
as yet, does not rule out the possibility that it
may only be a matter of time until we are
affected. US-75 runs through the center of
our Community and could easily become the
open door that allows us to have a potential
situation.
The Liberal Police Department has

had to make changes into our drug
storage facility because of the
overpowering strong odor that the
Colorado marijuana has. A fan had
to be installed to help with the
stench. Experienced officers and
investigators can smell and see the
difference between Colorado
marijuana and outside sources.
Although we cannot show

more marijuana being
available in Liberal, based
on Colorados legalization
policies; we do believe
that Colorado marijuana
has dominated our market
since its legalization.
Office/Agency
Seizures
Lyon County Sheriff's Office over 100
Lyons Police Department
over 100
yes
It is common for the drug dealers to go to

Colorado and buy the marijuana. They return
to our area and distribute the marijuana
throughout our community. It is uncommon
for us to find or seize what is referred to as
'Brick Weed' which probably comes from
Mexico and is almost obsolete in our
community.

yes
We find it 10% of the time.

Edibles are hard to find due to
the wide variety of different
kinds. Most edibles are
overlooked unless the suspect
tells us what they are.
yes
A woman with an unauthorized

rental car who hit a gas pump at
the Kaps Store. She was on meth
and marijuana. The highway
patrol took the drug search in
which she had marijuana 'gummy
bear' candy and other candy with
the listed THC on the packs. This
was all from Colorado.

products
yes
We have swized numerous oils

that specifically say they
contain a certain amount of
THC. Once again if the suspect
leaves the oil in the actual
container it is located and
seized. If the product is
removed from the original
container it is hard to locate
these items. Suspects often
claim they order the oils over
the internet and they are
shipped directly to them.
Overall effect
We are often told by the suspects we seize the

marijuana from. You can also tell by the strong odor
or fluffy buds which is consistent with Colorado
Marijuana.
It has been detrimental to Kansas. With the ease it We are finding a strange dependency of the
is obtained we are having a hard time keeping up
drug by users that commonly use other
with the number of cases.
drugs. It is not uncommon for a
methamphetamine user to have marijuana in
their possession. We are told they use
methamphetamine in the morning and then
smoke marijuana at night to go to sleep. We
are finding the two used and possessed
together more than we did prior to 2014.
We are a smaller community and have some

drug problems probably on scale with other
communities the size of Lyons.
Maple Hill Police

Department
I am a Kansas transplant from Washington State. I

have been the City Marshal in Maple Hill for 10
months. Within that period of time, we have made
no marijuana related cases. Also, there are no
pending cases, or evidence related to marijuana
cases currently in our records. Unfortunately, I have
no data to contribute on this issue.
Marion County Sheriff's

Office
Marion Police Department

Marquette Police
Department
Marshall County Sheriffs
Office
Mayetta Police Department

McLouth Police
Department
2
None
no
no
No
no
no
yes
no
no
no
no
yes
None
1
7 cases total,
6 total, unknown how many from
unknown how many CO
from CO
McPherson County Sheriff's

Office
30
McPherson Police
Department
20 Unknown
15
no
car stop in 2015 by a deputy and

his k-9 on U.S. 36 yielded
marijuana and edibles that were
being transported from Colorado
to Illinois by two females that
stated that they went to Colorado
specifically for that reason
no
yes
4 juveniles with possession, unknown

whether from CO
no
yes
Local Juveniles have been found in possession

of medical grade marijuana from Colorado as
this seems to be the marijuana that is the
easiest for them to purchase. We've seen
increases in the use, selling and purchasing at
local schools.
yes
yes
Based off of other seizures in this city, some

of the Marijuana seized form juveniles appear
to be the same type of marijuana seized
where the individual advised that it was
Colorado marijuana.
no
I am sure it is here but it has not been specifically

identified or indicated in any of our cases.
No
The suspect stated he got the marijauna in Colorado

and was taking it back to St. Louis.
It really has not effeted us yet
suspects stated that they bought the marijuana and

products from colorado
minimal
no
Since January 2014, there was
one (1) incident where a
marijuana by-product (i.e.
wax/substance) was found.
There is no information to
indicate if the substance came
from Colorado.
We've seized cookies, chocolates,
and numerous candies and
edibles containing Marijuana/THC
directly linked to Colorado based
on labels.
yes
Continuously seizing THC Wax

and E-Cig canisters containing
Cannabis and THC. These are
being transported frequently
through our jurisdiction and
even staying locally.
In this report I have only included data where the

individual admitted the Marijuana was from Colorado
or it was identified by labels/markings showing
Colorado as state of origin.
yes
We have worked approximately Interviews where the suspect said it came from
12 or more cases where wax
Colorado.
was seized and based from the
interview of the suspect it was
said to have come from
Colorado.
No noticeable effect.
NA
I have no firm conclusion that the legalization of

marijuana in Colorado has had any effect on the
McLouth jurisdiction.
I maintain the strong opinion that any

legalization of marijuana or its by-products
anywhere in the United States is a danger to
our society and the health and welfare of our
citizens, whether they engage in using
marijuana or not.
Marijuana seizures have increased drastically due to

the legalization, this is due partly to our location
with US-56, K-61 and I-135 Highways located within
our counties.
Due to the increase we have created a Drug

Task Force and in the process of assigning
our K-9 unit to drug interdiction as a full-time
basis.
We believe that the (quality) and availability of

Colorado marijuana from a neighboring state has
increased the volume coming in to our community.
Office/Agency
Seizures
Meade County Sheriff's

Office
around 2 to 3
personal use
no
yes
one arrest for DWS small amount

of edibles found during inventory

products
yes
Same arrest DWS also had

waxes
Overall effect
Most stated they got it in Colorado
We have intelligence from reliable sources several

young adults are picking up Colorado marijuana
from Dodge City, Liberal and even Colorado, bring
back enough to sell and pay for their usage. Several
subjects that we UA for the court have stated they
went to Colorado for the weekend when they
tested hot for THC. Not sure if true or not but are
using it for an excuse because it's legal there.
Several younger people have told me they

have smoked marijuana in Colorado and a
few older adults said they would like to go
there and try it because it's legal.
The subjects were from Colorado and admitted.
Minor at the time. However the Department was

going through several turnovers and the
Department was not fully staffed.
I believe that there is a significant amount

coming through.
We do not know if any of the arrests we made for

Marijuana were connected to Colorado or not.
We do not know if the legalization of Marijuana in

Colorado has in any way effected the our
Jurisdiction.
Meade Police Department
no
no
no
Medicine Lodge Police

Department
Meriden Police Department
no
no
no
no
no
no
Merriam Police
Department
no
no
no
Metropolitan Topeka
Airport Authority Police
Department
Miami County Sheriff's
Office
no
no
no
no
yes
Minneapolis Kansas Police

Department
No
no
1
estimate number 15 estimate number 5
no
no
no
yes
Montezuma P.D.
Moran Police Department
0
0
0
0
no
no
no
no
No
no
Morris County Sheriff

Department
Morton County Sheriff
no
no
no
no
no
no
Mound City PD
Moundridge Police
Department
0
0
0
0
no
no
no
no
No
no
Mulberry Police
Department
Nemaha County Sheriff
no
no
no
no
no
no
case 1 - found in a labeled medication tube; case 2 found on person who was returning from Colorado.
He stated that it was given to him by a friend who had
obtained it at a legal dispensary; case 3 - Jars
containing marijuana were labeled Pure Medical
Dispensary and subject stated that it was given to him
while he was in Colorado.
Overall Colorado does not affect Nemaha County in

a large way. Being as far from Colorado as we are,
we do not have a large number of cases involving
what we know to be as Colorado Marijuana.
However, I do feel that it is a greater problem for
Sheriffs in Western Kansas and is costing their
agencies additional monies to enforce Kansas Law
and incarerate persons transporting marijuana from
Colorado.
Neosho County Sheriff
no
no
no
found empty m/j container or packaging from

Colorado
Minimal due to geographical location.
no
no
no
Mission Police Dept

Mitchell County Sheriff
Department
Ness County Sheriff's Office none known from

Colorado
None
During a search warrant, I located

Colorado Marijuana, THC
Brownies, THC Suckers and liquid
THC. All items were packaged
and labeled that they were from
Colorado and how much THC was
in each package.
yes
Liquid THC, used in a electronic It was packaged. The packaging stated it came from
vaporized cigarette.
Colorado and was made in Colorado.
No
Located 249 grams of candy and

cookies
no
yes
have at least one case of wax;

and liquid used in e-vap
cigarettes
I am aware of the problems this is causing

across the state and appreciate your efforts
to address these problems.
I'm sure there is plenty more than I know of. I have N/A
only had one specific case in our agency that was
positively identified as Colorado marijuana.
na
We haven't given it much thought. Didn't think to

ascertain if the marijuana came from Colorado.
Suspect stated it was purchased in Colorado

Subjects indicated traveling from Colorado and items
purchased in Colorado
Not a large impact as of now

Higher grade of marijuana then we are use to
seeing in this area
We could certainly keep track of items which

come from Colorado. We would like to learn
more about identifying these items, such as
would there be something on the packaging
to identify it as coming from Colorado. It
seems obvious that it would but we've not
experienced it to know for sure.
minimal
N/A
To date, we have seen no issues with Colorado

Marijuana in my jurisdiction.
N/A
So far it has not been an issue that I can tell.
N/A
I do hear of some locals that have gone to
Colorado to get Marijuana but I have no
evidence to back that.
no effect
Unknown effect. I am sure there is, since we are

approx 100 miles from state line.
Geographically far enough away not seeing

the affect.
Office/Agency
Seizures
Newton Police Department Between 2014-2015

our agency
investigated 311
cases involving
marijuana. Of these
cases, it is difficult
to note exactly how
many are what I
would consider
high grade
Colorado weed. As a
drug detective 44 of
those cases were
mine and at least
90% of that
marijuana was high
grade. I would
estimate on the low
end at least 70% of
the marijuana
seized by the patrol
division would also
be classified as high
grade marijuana
due to the
preference by users.
North Newton Police

Department
Norton County Sheriff's

Office
Norton Police Department

products
Overall effect
In all of our cases, it is difficult to say specifically how

much marijuana originated from Colorado as this
specific information is never noted or documented in
our reports. There have been several larger quantity
cases (multiple pounds) the patrol division have
worked off of I-135 within our City. This marijuana
was determined to have come from Colorado. The
frequencies of these seizures have increased since the
legalization of marijuana due to the availability.
Since the legalization of marijuana, we have seen an

increase in higher quality marijuana in our cases.
Although we cannot say without a doubt it is all
from Colorado, as a Drug Detective it is logical for
me to believe the majority of this marijuana is
originating from Colorado due to the ease of
availability.
Since 2014, we have arrested 206

people for possessing marijuana
and 29 people for distributing it.
Again there has been no
documentation as to whether
those arrested were found to
possess high grade Colorado
weed or traditional Mexican grade
marijuana. Due to having a college
in our city we have also seen
shipments of marijuana coming
from California so it is difficult to
determine which state the actual
higher quality marijuana is
originating from.
yes
Of the 206 people arrested for possessing

marijuana in our city, 23 of them were
juveniles. Statistic problem documenting
where the marijuana came from is the same
as in question 2.
yes
We have had a very small number

of cases, where marijuana
products to include marijuana
wax and edibles have been
located. There are less than 10
cases we have encountered these
products and they were in
personal use form, not for
distribution.
yes
We have had a very small

number of cases, where
marijuana products to include
marijuana wax and edibles have
been located. There are less
than 10 cases we have
encountered these products
and they were in personal use
form, not for distribution.
75
yes
We see quantities from 2-15 pounds of

Colorado Marijuana and 100's of edibles and
wax at car stops. The majority are reselling
the Marijuana.
yes
We have seen large quantities of

candies, cookies, cakes and the
like in vehicles we have stopped.
These products are attractive to
young adults and children.
Dosage units are very high in
these products.
yes
We have seen 100's of vials with Most of the products are clearly labeled with
hash oil which can be used in
dispensary, city and state.
the Vape E Cigarettes. This has
been common with young
adults and children.
Because of our relative proximity to CO, we

often see or hear of MJ being brought from
the Denver area. The individuals in Norton
are distributing the MJ regardless of the age
of the buyer.
yes
We have seen candies, especially

chocolates and our newest area
of concern in butane hash oils
(dabs or shatter). We have
identified a local dealer who has
shifted the majority of his
product from regular MJ to dabs.
yes
no
10
yes
Nortonville Police
Department
Norwich Police Department
no
no
no
no
no
Oberlin Police Dept.
yes
Two juveniles were found with marijuana in a

container which had a Colorado marijuana
store label attached to it.
no
yes
Wax has been found on at least In each case, the marijuana found was either labeled
three occasions. Wax was
as being from Colorado or the suspect provided
never found in this jurisdiction information indicating it was from Colorado.
prior to Colorado legalizing
marijuana to my knowledge.
19
yes
16 year old provided Gummy Bears by

parents to treat pain from medical condition.
yes
yes
MJ wax recovered during a

traffic stop.
Olathe Police Department
no
Our case load has increased, overtime has

increased.
no
BHO is becoming a problem.
Dabs/shatter is no readily
available in Norton. This has
been determined thru
intelligence gathering and CIs.
We are working to make cases
on these subjects.
Subjects arrested have identified it as being from CO. Detrimental. It is easily obtainable and is of a much As a career LEO I would vehemently oppose
In some case it personal use has still been in the
higher grade than that which typically would have the legalization of MJ in any form in KS. I
dispensers containers with the shop identified by Lic# been available.
recognize there may be medical benefits, but
the easy access for the 'medical cards' has
proven to problematic in CO. Even before
personal use was approved we still saw
issues form 'medical marijuana'.
no
Gummy Bears
subject purchased MJ in CO, and
made into edibles upon return to
KS.
17 year old possession/consumption

MJ candy
Edibles purchased in CO and
transported back.
N/A
No effect
Various-
Minimal impact, but it is present. Olathe is a

significant distance from CO and I suspect if we
Admissions from suspects, text messages indicating
were closer to CO we would see a larger impact due
purchase in CO, package shipped from CO intercepted, to our population size.
Med MJ with receipt from Wal-Mart in CO, CO
residents brought from CO to sell in KS, Admission
from suspect that his dealer frequently travels to CO
to purchase and sell in KS. Admission a friend
purchased for him while on trip to CO.
MJ wax recovered on traffic stop.
Onaga and Havensville

Police Departments
no
no
no
Osage City Police

Department
Osage County Sheriff
no
no
No
no
no
no
I would say the factual effect is small. I hear lots of

people talking about kids going to Colorado and
returning with marijuana products similar to candy
bars, however we have not found any.
No known effect to date.
All parties admitted to it being 'Colorado marijuana'
No effect
I believe it has increased the ease of availability and

the volume of marijuana in our jurisdiction.
2 traffic stops and 3 arrests but probably more that

haven't been caught yet. Not as big of crises here
than counties closer to Colorado
We have had an armed robbery where

suspects invaded a home under the belief
they had just returned from CO with a large
amount of MJ. This is an example of how the
possession of MJ is not a non-violent crime.
Office/Agency
Seizures
Osawatomie Police
Department
Osborne County Sheriff
None
None

no
Overall effect
no

products
no
N\A
Has not effected our jurisdiction.
N\A
yes
3 juveniles. The marijaua that was involved

was believed to be coming from Colorado,
based on the fact that Colorado vehicles had
been seen frequenting the home of the
juvenile's supplier for short periods of time
and randomly
no
no
The marijuana dealers in our area of a smaller stature

so the marijuaana that is introduced into the area has
already been repackaged and the only reason for our
belief that it is from Colorado is based on information
obtained from confidential sources and as stated
above Colorado vehicles being parked at known drug
dealer's homes.
Osborne Police Department
yes
Had a JV that was selling. We believe the

person they were buying from was getting it
from Colorado.
no
no
We have reason to believe that there was a runner to increased your cases involving marijuana
Colorado to pick it up
Oskaloosa Police
Department
Oswego Police Department
no
no
no
no
no
no
Ottawa County Sheriff

Ottawa Police Department
0
5
0
0
no
no
no
no
no
yes
no
no
13
no
yes
no
20
26
Overbrook Police
Department
Overland Park Police
Department
Paola Police Department

Park City Police
Department
Pawnee County Sheriff's

Office
4-5
no
yes
6 seizures
yes
no
yes
no
No Effects that this department has noticed at this

time.
no effect
Yes, one arrest was made where

a vapor cigarette was used to
smoke marijuana oil that was
from Colorado
The officers who made the arrest found

receipts/evidence for marijuana purchased from
Colorado and the suspects admitted to purchasing it
there.
one seizure of THC oil and

vegetation
Two of the 13 seizures were made from people who Total number of OPPD drug arrests: 2014 - 430,
held medical marijuana cards from Colorado and
2015- 564, both years - 994. Colorado marijaua
another was someone who had a "grow license"
arrests account for 1% of all drugs arrests.
issued by the State of Colorado. Additional
information included post arrest admissions, receipts,
and dispensary containers with labels from Colorado
dispensaries.
no
one seizure of candy Marijuana,
which the apprehended individual
claimed the candy Marijuana was
purchased in Colorado.
7 seizures included waxes, oils,

lotions, and E-cig products
N/A
No effects to date
see attached case summaries
First, we have noticed an increase in marijuana

users possessing high quality marijuana that
appears to be commercially produced and of high
potency. We have also noticed an increase in
offenders who respond to our enforcement
incredulously, as if marijuana were legal in Kansas,
resulting in increased tensions between law
enforcement and the community. This includes
juveniles and their parents who often criticize our
enforcement and respond in a manner that could
be described civilly disobedient. Furthermore, we
believe that Colorado "legalization" may be
increasing the willingness of our citizens to
experiment with and consume marijuana, whereas
before they may have been unwilling to do so due
to the social stigma once associated with its use,
along with possible arrest and conviction.
No
Perry Police Dept.
no
no
no
Phillips County Sheriff's

Dept.
no
no
yes
It appears to be an increase in marijuana arrest in

our jurisdiction.
After reviewing the arrest made since Jan. 1,

2014 there were 133 marijuana arrest in our
jurisdiction. 5 Marijuana arrest were from
Colorado.
minimal
no
Peabody Police
Department
The only marijuana seized by this agency that

still had its dispensary packaging intact
occurred prior to the time period specified.
N/A No effect thus far in our City, to my

knowledge.
More information and detailed case
summaries in letter.
I honestly don't feel it has impacted our community

any worse then it was before becoming legal. Its
always been here and always will be.
I think this is a growing problem in the State of
Kansas. In conducting the investigations we have
completed or in assisting other jursidctions we have
ran across one common theme especially among
juveniles . People are going to Colorado to buy their
marijuana and transporting it back to Kansas for
distribution and personal use. From what we have
gather it is not a quality issue relating to Colorado
marijuana, it is that marijuana is readily available
for sale in the State of Colorado.
Hash oil found in with some of Suspect stated it was from Colorado
the other marijuana in the same
traffic stop.
have not identified Colorado Marijuana in our

jurisdiction
We are starting to more of it coming through the
county
This information is just the tip of the iceberg

so to speak. We have conducted many
investigations and assisted other law
enforcement agencies with investigations all
stemming from marijuana suspected of
coming from the State of Colorado.
Office/Agency
Seizures
Pittsburg Police
Department
7 incidents have
clear evidence that
marijuana/concentr
ates sourced from
Colorado. This
number is likely
higher, however the
vast majority of
cases reported do
no provide any
indication of where
or what type of
marijuana was
seized.
Not enough data collected from to

provide an answer. The
Department has had numerous
DUI where marijuana is believed
to contributed to the impairment,
however none of these incidents
indicate the source/type of
marijuana recovered.

no

yes
THC-Edibles sourced from

Colorado dispensaries have been
seized on several occasions in
Pittsburg and within the County.
These included incidents where
the edibles were believed to be
distributed locally by dealers, as
well as incidents of the users
purchasing and transporting for
personal use.

products
yes
THC-Concentrate waxes have

The reported incidents which were sourced from
been seized along with edibles Colorado were identified either through packaging,
(candy, baked goods) on several phone exploitation, or interviews.
occasions. Some of these are
likely sourced from Colorado,
however local operations to
manufacture THC-concentrate
waxes have also been observed.
Pittsburg State University

Police Department
Plainville Kansas Police
Dept
Pottawatomi County
Sheriff's Office
Prairie Band Potawatomi
Tribal Police Department
Overall effect
We have had no indication or reference to Colorado

marijuana in any of our cases.
2
no
yes
no
no
Adult suspect was found with

marijuana suckers
no
Suspect stated it was from Colorado
a couple of cases
We know its here, just haven't seized alot

Not a huge influx
Six
Prairie Village PD
Twelve
We have arrested multiple

juveniles who were possessing
THC wax and THC oil.
Pratt County Sheriff

Pratt Police Department
0
1
0
1
no
no
no
no
Rawlins County Sheriff's

Office
Republic County Sheriff's
<5
Office
Rice County Sheriffs Office
no
no
no
no
no
No
no
no
no
We have recovered THC wax and

THC butter from multiple
juveniles.
yes
yes
yes
In 2014 we saw an increase in

Packaging and statements from suspects
commercial packaged marijuana
within our jurisdiction.
60
<5
Multiple juveniles have been arrested with

the containers which have the legal colorado
logo's on it as well as arresting multiple
people who admit to getting it from colorado
who are selling to juveniles.
yes
32
no
no
Increased issues with sales at local businesses

within our community as well as an increase in case
load.
We have arrested multiple people who admit they are Since the legalization of marijuana in Colorado we
going to Colorado or have a friend going to Colorado have seen a large influx of marijuana. The amounts
to purchase marijuana.
of arrests have greatly increased since January 1st,
2014 as well as the amount of marijuana being
seized from these subjects.
none
NA
The marijuana is going to be here either way, but it
easier to access from a legal point in Colorado.
There also becomes the ability to get more options
like foods, oils, and other items which we know are
here but have not busted yet.
Information included in Riley County District
Attorney report. We have not had much
impact from Colorado aside from a few cases
that we linked back to the state.
Roeland Park Police

Department
Rooks County Sheriff's
Office
Rush County Sheriff
I have been told by many people that they

are going to Colorado to purchase several
pounds of marijuana or THC wax at a time.
Also many of these are being purchase
illegally in Colorado from places that are still
selling it on the street or out the back door
of dispensaries.
None
Suspect stated he purchased the marijuana in
Colorado.
The Subjects told us they were getting it in Colorado
and bringing it to Kansas
Arrestee stated marijuana came from Co.
Arrestee was also from Co.
We asked the individuals where they got there
marijuana directly and they advised Colorado.
Riley County Police

Department
Rose Hill Police

Department
The availability of marijuana in Colorado is believed

to have impacted the amount of marijuana
distributors locally. Individuals involved in the
illegal distribution, appear to have easier access to
marijuana with a higher potency.
no
no
no
10
yes
We have seen on most occasions people are

pooling their money then a couple of them
drive to CO and purchase the marijuana and
bring it back. We have seen this from High
school and college kids to adults.
no
yes
Vehicle stop with est. 8 pounds Suspect involved stated he was coming from
of marijuana and 2 packages of Colorado and had a residence there.
dabs that can be used for vapor
smoking.
We have see an increase of possession of

I feel it has made a bigger issue to the
marijuana cases that suspects admit is coming from bordering county's and interstate trafficking.
CO.
We are seeing it more and more on the
secondary highway's going east and west in
our jurisdiction.
yes
We established it came from Colorado either

by the presence of a label or through an
admission by the juvenile.
no
yes
I incident that was documented Label present / admission from subject.

through
statements/investigation.
I believe it has made access to marijuana easier.
no
no
yes
Hash oil
There has been an increase. Interviews conducted

on some cases has gained information that several
people travel to Colorado to obtain marijuana.
3 (one actually in
2013)
The packaging indicated it came from Colorado.
Office/Agency
Russell County Sheriff's
Office
Seizures

products
10
no
yes
several edibles including

marijuana candy bars, muffins,
and honey.
yes
Russell Police Department
no
yes
An officer responded to a local

motel for a welfare check. During
the check subject admitted to
having Marijuana in his
possession. The subject was
found to be in possession of
Marijuana in a pill bottle, THC
candy and paraphernalia. Subject
advised the Marijuana and candy
was from Colorado.
no
Sabetha Police Department
no
no
Salina Police Department
2014 Drug Task

Force Marijuana
seized = 14.1 lbs, 40
adult arrests, 3
Juvenile arrests;
2015 Drug Task
Force Marijuana
seized = 28.5 lbs, 70
adult arrests
Saline County Sheriff's

Office
44
51
no
Scott City Police

Department
25
10
yes
no
Scott Co. Sheriff Dept.

Sedgwick County Sheriff's
Office
60 Colorado
marijauana cases
total (cases listed in
email attachment)
We arrested three juveniles from Garden City

who had gone to Denver to pickup 5 lbs of
marijuana. The Marijuana was so strong that
the officer could smell it as he approached
their vehicle.
have encountered types of wax

and oil based marijuana
products labeled and wrapped
along with other consumables
yes
THC Oil was mailed to an

individual from Colorado but
the evidence was not sufficent
to prosecute.
Overall effect
arrestees have informed officers that the marijuana

involved came from Colorado. Also, several
containers labeled what kind of marijuana it was,
what distributor it came from along with address.
Some containers were labeled with the Colorado State
Flag.
It has increased the amount marijuana being

transported through Kansas. It has caused an
increase of transient traffic going west along our
major highways. Suspects and/or arrestees use the
legalization in Colorado as justification for
possessing Marijuana everywhere else. It also
causes more people to ignore the warning signs
that Marijuana is Illegal in Kansas. And has created
a new supplier other than other states or countries.
If the Marijuana that was stated as being

from Colorado is not marked in containers
how is it known if it was bought in Colorado.
Edibles are a great concern, because people
thinking it is ordinary candies, cookies, or
muffins as an example and unknowingly
consume products with Marijuana is very
dangerous. Also, Weapons have been found
on individuals who were arrested for
trafficking marijuana from Colorado.
Weapons included guns and knives. Many of
these people have long and violent
backgrounds. Also with the backgrounds
these people have been in jail numerous
times and/or prison due to marijuana and
other illegal drugs. Closing been trained and
taught that Marijuana tend to lead into other
bad things such as drugs and/or bad
decisions.
The incident we are aware of the subject admitted the

marijuana was from Colorado. Our department has
conducted several search warrants for drugs however
we are unsure what comes from Colorado as the
suspects wont elaborate.
As stated above, we are not sure where the

Marijuana is coming from but seems to be more
personal use showing up. Seems to be more
transient traffic close to I70.
We informed by a significant other that the product

found was mailed in from Colorado.
Believe it is greater than we can tell, but we have

not been able to establish if the marijuana in our
area originated in Colorado.
We are on the far east side of the state. It is

tough to dertimine how much of our
marijuana is coming from Colorado. We have
had individuals tell us that Colorado
marijuana is in the area, we just have not
been able to confirm its origin when we find
it.
yes
1 case involving THC/edible

product 205.9 gm
yes
1 case involving THC wax 1.8 gm
yes
We have seized 14.5 lbs of

edibles since January of 2014.
yes
We have seized 3.5 lbs of

wax/oils since January of 2014.
Of the 129 drug cases that the SASO has investigated 1/3 of the drug cases we now work can be directly
since Jan of 2014 there have been 44 tied to Colorado tied to Colorado.
by statements or other evidence in the case.
It's become much more common to find

possession with intent cases coming from
marijuana originating in Colorado.
yes
We arrested a guy who had

Marijuana and candy with thc in it
and he was coming from
Colorado.
yes
We had a CI buy THC wax and

an informant said it came from
colorado.
The Juveniles and the candy both suspects said that

they came from Colorado where they bought the
products.
We arrested a 62 year old male last month

who was dealing large amounts of Marijuana
in our community he was dealing to adults
and kids alike. He told us in an interview that
he gets all of his Marijuana out of colorado.
no
no
Since 2014, we have not seen a great

increase in the amount of marijuana cases in
Salina; the trend is towards other narcotics.
It is apparent that the majority of the
marijuana we see in Salina comes directly
from or has ties to Colorado. We know this
based on information from people arrested
and spoken to during these investigations. It
is unknown exactly how much or an exact
percentage of marijuana is coming from
Colorado in relation to other areas of the
country or within our state. We are in the
process going forward of tracking this
information so we can get a better
understanding of the impact Colorado has on
marijuana in our city. It should be noted the
numbers above do not reflect marijuana
cases worked by patrol as we have no way to
determine where these cases originated
from.
We no longer see brick weed out of Mexico, all our

Marijuana now comes out of Colorado. It is better
weed and alot more potent. It had driven the price
up. We are getting over run by Colorado weed
Subject stated they bought the marijuana in Colorado its just stopped that they would legalize it
start up the KBI & DEA task force back in

western kansas
We have several other cases that we suspect More details in letter
being from Colorado due to the grade of
marijuana but the suspects invoked their
rights and we could not totally confirm the
marijuana came from Colorado. We wanted
absolutes so these cases are not counted.
Office/Agency
Seizures
Sedgwick P.D.
Seneca Police Department
zero
zero
Seward County Sheriff

Office
unable to have
unable to have enough
enough information information to give a proper
to give a proper
answer
answer
Shawnee County Sheriff's

Office
Shawnee Kansas Police

Department
Shawnee Mission School

District Police Dept.
Sherman County Sheriff's
Office
Silver Lake Police

Department

products
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
4 unknown
At least 5
documented cases.
yes
yes
4 cases - THC candy, chocolates

and brownies
yes
A juvenile in a local high school claimed the

marijuana was purchased in Colorado but
didn't provide how he obtained the
marijuana.
yes
'Elephant Extract'
no
we have had several cases of Juveniles arrests

mostly with smoking but a couple edibles.
The survey data of Kansas Communities that
Care for Sherman County shows the increase
from 2013 1.51% to 2015 6.86% of students
in grades 6, 8, 10 and 12 reporting any use of
marijuana within the past 30 days. Along
with the increase in tobacco and alcohol use
reported since the legalization in Colorado, it
has had a devastating effect on the youth of
our community. I have had a 4th grade
student debate with me as to why they
should be able to smoke Marijuana.
yes
We have multiple cases with

edibles ranging from soda drinks,
suckers, peanut butter cups, etc .
2013 - 2 edibles, 2014- 3 edibles,
2015 - estimated 15 edibles
yes
no
no
2 cases - butane and other

paraphernalia to process the
marijuana into wax and oil
seized from traffic stop; 1lb of
THC Butane Honey Oil seized
from traffic stop
Overall effect
N/A not enough information collected to give a

proper answer
N/A not enough information collected to give a

proper answer
N/A not enough information collected to give

a proper answer
The majority of interdiction cases are now marijuana.

The THC content being higher brings more money to
the drug dealer, in turn brings violence. The
perception from the public and in some cases Law
Enforcement is that marijuana is not a problem (really
saw the mind set change after Colorado legalized
marijuana). Our Drug Enforcement Unit has really
seen a spike in subjects selling marijuana in Shawnee
County due to the higher cost of it which in turn the
dealer can make a larger profit. Subjects that we
interview will tell us that the Colorado marijuana gets
them higher than the Mexican marijuana. The
Shawnee County Sheriff Office worked a homicide
where the victim was selling large amounts of
marijuana. The victims wife and two kids were in the
house when the suspects entered the residence, shot
and killed the drug dealer. Numerous pounds of
marijuana and thousands of dollars in currency were
discovered in the residence during the service of a
search warrant at the homicide scene. I point this out
due to the public having the opinion that marijuana is
not a dangerous drug. With Colorado bordering
Kansas, we have received information from numerous
subjects/sources that users and dealers will drive to
Colorado to pick up marijuana ranging from a pound
of marijuana to multiple pounds. The close proximity
makes it easier for subjects to get the marijuana, THC
edibles and other THC products.
The majority of our traffic stops in Shawnee County

are away from I-70. They are with local teenagers
and adults involving marijuana seizures. We are not
able to determine if the marijuana in some cases
originated from Colorado due to the fact that some
of these subjects are purchasing marijuana from
Shawnee County citizens. We know from interviews
with these subjects that they do not normally ask
their dealer where they get their supply from.
In closing I would say due to my training and

experience that marijuana use is on the same
level of methamphetamine as far as the ease
of purchasing it. Most of the subjects we
deal with can get either narcotic in a short
amount of time. They both have become so
wide spread through our community. Often
times we ask methamphetamine users how
they got started and they have told us that
they started out with marijuana.
The 5 that I mentioned all claimed to have purchased Very little in this part of the state.
the marijuana legally in Colorado
No
2012 - 26, 2013 - 60,

2014 - 70, 2015 data not cellected
yet, 97 by counting
booking into jail.
See letter for more
details
I believe we have only had 2 that

were only marijuana - I am
unaware of how many alcohol
arrests also had Marijuana.
Information would not be
available.
yes
None
None
no
no
no
Smith Center Police

Department
Smith County Sheriff's

Office
South Haven Police
Department
South Hutchinson Police
Department
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
no
We have had multiple cases

that wax, oils, hash tar, Most
of the arrest with moderate
amounts has also included
these products. Suspects would
have small quantities of raw
product with a wide selection of
different products. 2012 mostly raw with one liquid,
2013 - 3 hash oils, 2014 - 6 hash
tar/oil and 2 wax, 2015 estimated 10 hash tar/oil and 6
wax
Mostly all cases have been identified as Colorado

Marijuana by the suspect admission to buying in
Colorado or admission of traveling from Colorado, the
labeling on the package, or the appearance of the
Marijuana is consistent with the other Marijuana that
could be positivity identified as coming from
Colorado. This is especially true for the 2013 and
2014 data. 2012 it was not as defined.
N/A
We have discovered no Colorado marijuana in our

schools.
The affect to my agency has been profound and I
have had to redirect resources to help cover this
problem. My Food budget was over $11,000 even
though I had made adjustment in April to help
control this problem. I started purchasing cheaper
meals and other measures. I also told my deputies
to not bother with the smaller amounts unless we
could turn them to help build cases on the Dealers.
I also believe the KHP started doing more summons
and not arresting for small quantities. I have also
had fewer resources to deal with normal patrol
because of having to reassign personnel to the
Bastille and transporting the individuals that did
not show up after the court started releasing the
individuals quicker on Own Recognizance Bonds.
The cost to the Sherman County citizens is

hard to measure on a numerical scale. I have
had to change my decisions on how I wanted
to run my Office because of the added cost
to care for the Colorado marijuana dealers
arrested transporting through my county.
The damage to the youth will be a hard road
to correct the false information they received
and continued push to educate them on the
truth about marijuana.
Lots of Questions: WHY ? From the teenagers and

younger kids in Silver Lake. Why is it against the
law in Ks. Our DARE officer is questioned all the
time about this.
The effects of the Colorado marijuana legalization
have not been felt that much in our jurisdictions as
some jurisdictions out west closer to the Colorado
since January 1st 2014. But I feel we will start
having to deal with a lot more it in the near future.
approx. 20 grams
none
traffic stop seizure
n/a
n/a
Office/Agency
Seizures

products
Overall effect
The marijuana seized was inside containers

referencing Colorado. The first case contained
marijuana inside a glass jar labeled "Rocky Mountain
High Colorado" with a Colorado logo affixed to this
label as well. The second case contained marijuana
located inside a bottle labeled "Colorado Alternative
Medicine."
The effect seems to be considerably low within the

city limits of Spring Hill KS given that the last 2
years with 171 narcotic related reports/arrests, only
2 case have the mention of Colorado based
marijuana.
Spring Hill Police

Department
no
no
no
St. Francis Police

Department
St. John Police Department
no
no
no
no
no
no
St. Marys Police

Department
Stafford County Sheriff's
Office
no
no
no
yes
no
no
no
no
no
10
13
no
no
yes
in most of those cases the suspects told us they or

their supplier has been to Colorado to purchase the
marijuana.
it has made it easier to obtain higher quality

marijuana in our area.
minimal
Sterling Police Department

Stockton Police
Department
Sumner County Sheriff's

Office
Approx. 2
2 or less
Tonganoxie PD
Topeka Police Department Seven confirmed,

but no true way to
track
Marijuana was found in a vehicle belonging to

a high school student. The student admitted
going to Colorado to obtain the marijuana.
Marijuana seized was in containers labeled as coming I believe it Colorado legalization has made it far
from a dispensary in Colorado.
easier for individuals to obtain Marijuana in my
jurisdiction.
N/A
We have had no known incidents involving it.
The suspect admitted to going to Colorado to obtain
the marijuana.
none
no
no
Individual lived in Colorado passing through with

prescription type bottles and labeling.
no
no
no
Some of the marijuana was said (by the suspects) to minimal that we are able to prove
be from Colorado. Other incidents had the dispensary
labels affixed to the container.
10
yes
yes
no
yes
This has not been a huge

problem, but we have served a
couple of warrants where
gummies and similar candies have
been present that tested positive
for THC.
yes
Also, not very common, but

have come across a couple of
instances while serving search
warrants.
Higher grade marijuana has become more

prevalent. This combined with minor penalties has
made selling this marijuana a profitable option to
many dealers.
receipts and statements from people involved
It has increased in jail population, the Highway

Patrol has brought us numerous people that they
have arrested for some sort of marijuana
possession
0
4
0
2
no
no
Udall Police Department
yes
Ulysses Police Department
no
no
no
Ulysses Police Department
no
no
no
On two case the suspects admitted through the

With this jurisdiction been so close to the Colorado
interviews the marijuana came from Colorado. One
State line there has and will continue to be an
case the officer located evidence and paperwork
increase in the flow of marijuana from Colorado.
showing the subject had recently been in the Denver,
Co area. Two cases the officer believed through his
experience the marijuana he seized was a 'hydro'
strain that is more potent and has a stronger smell.
Union Pacific RailroadKansas City Division

University of Kansas
Medical Center Police Dept.
no
no
no
N/A
no
no
no
Suspect stated he/she purchased the marijuana in

Colorado.
University of Kansas Public

Safety Office
14
yes
Wax was being converted into hard candy and

sold to youths in the area.
A 17 year old was found in possession of

marijuana wax.
yes
yes
Hard candy.
In one case marijuana from

Colorado was used to make
butter. Which was used to make
cookies and brownies.
no
no
Information from both interviews and packaging that

was present.
Topeka Public Schools

Trego County Sheriff's
Office
Found with people traveling

through was chocolate bars, hard
candy, mints,brownies, and
energy drinks containing THC
yes
yes
I believe there is far more 'Colorado

Marijuana' in my jurisdiction than just the
one seizure.
Although we have not seen much effect in our

county, I do believe we will. Too easy to drive a few
hours and purchase it.
We believe most of our high grade marijuana

is coming from the State of Colorado. We
have found packaging to indicate that this is
the case, but have no tracking measures in
place to indicate and record where the
marijuana is from. It is also hard to
determine the extent when the predominate
number of arrests the city makes will be
personal use that has been repackaged.
Our department seized approx. Was told in interview the marijuana came from
5 ounces of wax.
Colorado. Some jars labeled with brand names was
seized as well.
Since 2014 with knowledge and

training we had 14 cases in
which individuals were using
marijuana wax and
paraphernalia they had
In most cases the suspects or people associated with

them were from Colorado or the packaging that was
gathered as evidence was packaged differently. An
example would be a pill bottle with the name of the
strain of marijuana was displayed.
becoming a bid problem. We have heard of two

other locals that are trafficking marijuana from
Colorado to Kansas for re-sale.
I am not certain there is more marijuana use

and activity since the change in Colorado
law. The origination point has shifted. The
quality appears to be better but the prices
has remained the same from what we are
being told.
We need the opportunity to seize assets of

the traffickers, also need to be able to apply
for grant monies to beef up traffic
enforcement in the local jurisdictions.
The case number reported for this survey are

low. This does not reflect numerous other
incidents of traffic stops conducted of
subjects believed to be coming from the
Colorado area. The odor of marijuana was
present in the vehicle. No marijuana was
located though after searches conducted on
the vehicles.
No Known Effect at this time
In our jurisdiction the increase in high grade

marijuana and wax has increased, but to what
extent is unknown because suspects are unwilling
to tell us where the marijuana was obtained.
I would like to see more training

opportunities for front line officers to detect
and recognize the other forms of marijuana
that are being produced in Colorado.
Office/Agency
Seizures
USD 345 Seaman School

District Police
USD 396 PD
USD375 Campus PD
None
None
Valley Center Police

Department
estimate 30 cases
total (marijuana,
wax and shattered
from Colorado)
Valley Falls PD
Victoria Police Department
Wabaunsee County
Sheriff's Office
Wakefield Police
Department
Wallace County Sheriff's
about 50
Office
Washburn Rural USD 437
zero
School Police
Washburn University Police
Overall effect
no
no
N/A
No effects
N/A
no
no
no
no
NA
0
0
0
0
no
no
0
1
0
1
no
yes
Six. The number of Unknown

cases listed reflects
the minimum as our
data entry and/or
search capabilities
may overlook some
cases .
Wakeeney Police
Department
no
52 1 arrest for DUI involving Colorado

marijuana. Approximately 90% of
the motorists arrested at the 24/7
truck stop and the Travel Shoppe
have admitted to
smoking/consuming marijuana
while leaving Colorado. Since no
impaired driving was observed
prior to their contact by officers,
no DUI investigations were
conducted.
For the most part, Victoria doesn't see a lot of

drug activity. We recently arrested a juvenile
for having marijuana and a hybrid wax that is
made of marijuana. Both of these drugs were
from Colorado. With the legalization just on
the West side of our border, I feel this will
become a bigger problem over time.
no
yes
no
yes
no
yes
A while back, I learned of

chocolate bars that contained
marijuana in my jurisdiction. This
is a big concern that I have
because of juveniles not knowing
and understanding the risks.
Making a candy out of this drug is
very dangerous to the point it can
be consumed to an amount that
is deadly.

products
no
yes
yes
The people arrested with

edibles and other by-products
are transient or otherwise not
connected with the local
jurisdiction and are merely
passing through. Most
commonly these arrests are
made by the KHP.
Edibles were present in 12% of

drug seizures made during 2015.
yes
Marijuana concentrates were

present in 10% of drug seizures
made during 2015.
candybars, all kinds of things
yes
no
no
unable to determine
yes
yes
zero
no
no
No
no
no
no
The juvenile that I just recently

arrested for possession of
marijuana, also had a wax
hybrid marijuana drug in his
pocket.
0
n/a
It has made marijuana look not as bad or illegal to NA
the juveniles
Its obvious our cases continue to increase yearly,
but we have had some success interviewing
individuals that said the drugs they were caught
with came directly from Colorado. Marijuana is not
the only drug that we have located in Valley Center.
We have also located Wax (derivative of Hashish)
and a small amount of Shattered (glass-like
appearance-THC based) that also came from
Colorado.
na
The container that contained the marijuana said it
was medical. The Wax hybrid container was very legit
and appeared to have come from a legal store that
sold marijuana.
na
na
We haven't noticed a big effect just yet. Victoria
has never really experienced a big drug problem. I
feel the legalization in Colorado will eventually
cause problems for us in the future. It's basic
common sense. If you allow for easier access, your
problem will expand.
Packaging; direction of travel; statement/admission;
there is an attributed increase in cost of housing,

transportation, and prosecution. It is my finding
that the biggest burden is to the jail budget and the
cost of transporting. Transportation costs are
incurred when a person is released by KHP in lieu of
a warrant at a later date and the Sheriff's Office is
obligated to pick these people up where they are
arrested or if they bond out and don't return for
court and are then later picked up elsewhere on a
Wabaunsee County Warrant. Regardless
Wabaunsee County is obligated to foot the bill for
transportation and housing costs.
Due to the rural landscape of Wabaunsee

County and the small population the
Colorado marijuana situation is limited to
interstate trafficking Keep in mind that many
of the arrests are not included in this
summary as the KHP conducts interdiction
patrols which generate most of the arrests
for illegal drugs on Interstate 70.

caused a marked increase in drug arrests in
WaKeeney - in both residential investigations as
well as 'non-local' arrests mainly consisting of
motorists interdicted at I-70, exit 127, which serves
the 24/7 Truck Stop and the Travel Shoppe gas
station. WaKeeny is only 4 hours from Denver. It is
becoming more and more frequent for people to
take road trips to Colorado and then return with
personal0use marijuana and other drugs. This trend
will only continue in ever-increasing numbers;
bringing with it the habitual use and misguided
acceptance of drugged driving, recreational use and
abuse of edibles that are laced with far more THC
than consumers realize, and the inevitable medical
issues of overdose and death.
Detailed report submitted. Increase in

Colorado marijuana seizures since 2014,
decrease in non-Colorado marijuana seized.
People just don't want to grow their own
when they can drive to Colorado and
purchase much stronger marijuana, edibles
and concentrates.
no
Very little
Colorado packaging, sometimes they tell us, higher
grade
They are trafficking other drugs along with

marijuana
The number of arrests and referrals for marijuana

related offenses have increased but we cannot
verify this as a result of legalization of marijuana in
Colorado.
Marijuana arrests in the past three years,

although not verified as originating in
Colorado, have increased: 2012- 6 arrests and
referrals, 2013- 8 arrests and referrals, 201412 arrests and referrals and 2015-22 arrests
and referrals. Marijuana arrests on campus
almost doubled from 2014 to 2015.
Office/Agency
Seizures
Washington County
Sheriff's Office
no
yes
Waverly Police Department
no
no
Weir Police Department
no
no
Wellington Police
Department
none
2
none
2
no
yes
Wellsville Police
Department
no
no
Wichita County Sheriff's

0
Office
Wichita Police Department 21 can be confirmed
through Special
Investigation
Bureau but more
have occurred that
are difficult to track
down. My Bureau
has larger
seizures/purchases.
Wichita State University

Police Department
Wilson County Sheriff's
Office
Wilson Police Department
0
19 on distribution level of
possession. More out there but
difficult to pull statistic due to not
tracking.
1 3 arrests in the above mentioned

seizure
no
yes
We have made traffic stops which

resulted in arrests pertaining to
the possession and/or trafficking
of 'Colorado Marijuana'. The
content of the items found is
traditional marijuana, but also of
edibles such as food and/or
candy.
yes
Overall effect
yes
Oils found on traffic stops.
Labels on the marijuana packaging indicated sold from Colorado's legalization of marijuana has been
Colorado dispensaries.
detrimental to Kansas and I'm sure the other
surrounding states to Colorado. I believe their
legalization has nothing but negative effects for
Kansas.
yes
Waverly is a part-time police

department so usually any
problems that take place here
are taken care of by the Coffey
County Sheriffs Office.
However there has been some
situations typically involving
workers that come to the area
for projects.
Labeled from businesses out of Colorado
no
57yoa WM & 20yoa WM arrested
for poss MJ & candy 'THC'
suckers.
Waverly is a small town off of any major highway

therefore in our area it is yet to me a major
problem.
I do know that there is more signs of

Colorado marijuana in the jurisdiction of
Coffey County on major highways however it
is yet to begin to travel into the town of
Waverly.
have had zero incidents with marijuana in our city.
has had no effect in our city, our problem is ice and

meth.
Markings on packages labeled Crested Butte, Colorado Minor thus far
no
no
no
Many complaints received on juveniles/adults
selling hydro-marijuana. We deal with dealer
levels and can confirmed approximately
(more not able to confirm) 55 pounds and 20
ounces of Colorado Marijuana. Also confirm
MJ fuesed cookies and gummies picked off.
Total cash going back to Colorado we have
picked off is $294,770.00, estimates of
investigation show over in one case show
over $680,000.00 we missed and was already
sent. All information is low due to not
tracking all incidents.

products
I would say that legalization in any state that

borders Kansas would have an effect. Although we
are so close to the eastern border it would be hard
to know for sure.
Obviously the passing of such laws in

bordering states tends to drive more call for
legalization. I think this is harmful as
marijuana is usually found with harder drugs
and vice versa.
Have seen more in the high grade marijuana since

the legalization then marijuana from Mexico. Also
seeing more oils and edibles then before.
To give an accurate overall picture of what is

being seen, we would have to pull each
Marijuana case over the last 2 years and
review each interview/report. Information
provided did NOT include Field officers and
their cases, just the Undercover Detectives
and what they are seeing.
no
cookies, gummies
yes
no
no
no
no
no
unknown
no
yes
Cookies containing marijuana at

school rumored to have been
suupplied by ex-student now
living in Colorado
no
have siezed MJ oil, or butter, on

search warrants with Colorado
Marijuana. Knew plant
substance was from Colorado,
believe MJ oil was from there as
well.
Suspected stated from Colorado. During

investigations, have video and documents showing
product leaving Colorado and money returning to
Colorado.
There have been two

individuals that were arrested
with a form of marijuana oil. It
is unknown if that marijuana
originated in Colorado.
The individuals indicated they were returning from

California and passed through Colorado.
Minimal at this point in time

As you know, Wilson County is in the South East
portion of the state approximately an hour drive
from Oklahoma and Missouri State lines. Our
marijuana problem is with the Mexican Cartels that
take up residence in remote areas of our county
during the growing season.
In our region of the state the Colorado

Marijauana does not seem to be an issue at
this time. As stated above, our regional
problem is with the Mexican Cartels. The KBI
has made a valiant effort to assist Wilson
County with this problem. However, their
resources are extremely limited due to not
enough Agents being assigned to this specific
region. Wilson County (as well as
Montgomery, Greenwood and Woodson
Counties) are serviced by two KBI Agents;
one Field Agent and one Special Operations
Division Agent. Hopefully, the Office of the
Attorney General will make every attempt to
rectify this situation in the near future.
none
In this county prosecution would be nice
Office/Agency
Seizures
Woodson County Sheriff's

Office
no
no
Wyandotte County Sheriff's

Office
Yates Center Police
Department
no
no
no
no

products
Overall effect
We did a controlled buy from a local that had just

moved back from Colorado and he admitted it had
came from Colorado.
There has been a lot of talk about it but so far we

have not had a lot that we could say came from
there.
We live in a poor county and not a lot of our

people can travel to Colorado to get it but
there is rumor in our area that it is being
brought back through here. The problem we
have is we can not say for sure if it is coming
from Colorado or not but have heard there
is. We have a lot coming from the Wichita
area and have been told that some is coming
from Colorado from there.
no
none that we have worked
it does not appear it has traveled very much

this far east
No
No effect
no
MARIJUANA SEIZURES
2013
2014
201.5
TOTAL MJ SEIZURES
TOTAL MJ WEIGHT Ibs
TOTAL EDIBLE SEIZURES
MJ SEIZURES COLORADO ORIG#N
PERCENTAGE MJ COLORADO ORIGIN
TOTAL MJ COLORADO WEIGHT Ibs
PERCENTAGE MJ WEIGHT COLORADO ORIGIN
TOTAL EDIBLES COLORADO ORIGIN
TOTAL EDIBLES COLORADO WEIGHT Ibs
PERCENTAGE EDIBLES COLORADO ORIGIN
243
6187
247
3498
25
143
58"
J646
216
3769
32
..
mAl :,;;---....._..-
-:";'.--'
,...... '"" . .,'--'"

r,.~_
riJrAL I!woi&i,"
L_
~ ..... _...........
.-,.
.-
I"'~
;;..
{(AAJ~I"'I!
.",IIIJ:C ... .. -"'IC
&
'''''""
-nON
~,..,..
U7
5~
1119
18"
53%
~
150
69"
J812
48"
**
**
**
1S
21
47
84%
56
94%
Jij&
11
lB'"
~"IWI
..
J.o_,..
30
",lIM
** Statistics are Reliable but Not Guaranteed**
Question # 2 How many atTests have been made in your jurisdiction since January 1,2014,
involving a person suspected of being impaired as a result of using Colorado Marijuana?
One (J)
Question # 3 Has Colorado marijuana been found in the possession of juveniles in your jurisdiction
since January. 2014? lfyes elaborate.
36-46 times. No elaboration.
Question # 4 Are you aware of any Colorado mal'ijuaua found in youI' jurisdiction since Janllary 1,
2014, in the form of edibles, food additives. or other ingestible pl'oducts? lfyes elaborate.
In addition to the above chart, an example ofthis type of seizure occurred in January of 20 15
when a KHP Trooper made the following single incident seizure involving 17 pounds ofTHC
laced edibles:
- 22 1 gram containers of "Shatter Hash".
- 7 bottles of "Star B arz" THC chocolates.
- 6 containers of "Loves Oven" T HC candies.
- 8 packages of "Full Melt" THC chocolate bars.
- 1 package ofTHC hard candy.

- 11 "Flying Aces" THC chocolate bars.
- 7 containers of "Puckers" hard THC candies.
- 4 bottles of "Edipure" mixed THC candy drops.
- 4 bottles of "Edipure" THC jellybeans.
- 6 bottles of "Insta High" THC powder mix.
- 5 bottles of Marijuana Bud.
- 36 THC chocolate bars.
- 2 bottles of Peanut Brittle THC bites.
- 2 boxes ofTHC "Awakening" mints.
- 2 containers ofTHC lemon drops.
- 4 Vapor pens.
Question # 5 Are you aware of any other Colorado marijuana by-products (such as waxes or oils)
found in your jurisdiction since January 1, 20141 If yes elaborate.
In 2014 the KHP had approximately 4 separate seizures involving THC wax. Approximately
4 pounds ofTHC wax was seized.
In 2015 the KHP had approximately 4 separate seizures involving THC wax. Approximately
2 pounds ofTHC wax was seized. There was one 2 pound THC infused syrup seizure.
Question # 6 If you have provided any information in response to the question above about
incidents in your jurisdiction, please describe wby you believe tbat tbe marijuana involved was, in
fact, Colorado mariiuana and did not come from anotber source.
We do not have the resources to definitively trace back marijuana seizures to a specific source
state with 100% certainty. We do suspect certain loads of marijuana coming from specific
locations based on clues such as: pocket trash, receipts, associates, GPS navigation tool
infonnation, and through interviews with the suspect(s), etc.
Question # 7 Overall, bow would you cbaracterize the effect of Colorado marijuana "legalization"
in your jurisdiction since January 1,20141
Our statistics show that since 2013 over half of all marijuana seized by the KHP is suspected of
originating in Colorado. Since recreational use legalization in2014, KHP experienced a significant
increase in seizures of Colorado marijuana and edibles. In 2015 nearly 70% of all KHP marijuana
seizures were suspected to be of Colorado origin and approximately 94% of all edible seizures were
Colorado based.
Question # 8 Please provide any otber information you believe would assist tbe Office of tbe
Attorney General in ascertaining tbe true condition of the Colorado mariiuana situation in your
jurisdiction and in Kansas.
We believe our statistics are indicative of a significant rise in Colorado marijuana flowing into
and through the state of Kansas.

"Legalization" of Marijuana in Colorado: The Impact On Kansas

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"Legalization" of Marijuana in Colorado: The Impact On Kansas

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Legalization of Marijuana in Colorado:

The Impact on Kansas

KANSAS ATTORNEY GENERAL

Kansas Highway Patrol Data

** Statistics are Reliable but Not Guaranteed**

22 1 gram containers of Shatter Hash

8 packages of Full Melt THC chocolate bars

A legal purchase of marijuana from a dispensary in Colorado can be obtained for

state. Interstate extradition on misdemeanor cases is discouraged and is expensive.

Criminal prosecutions CINC cases

Change in how Please elaborate

How do you know the marijuana was

Any other information

The designation of a first

About 5 cases (1 large no

yes - one for sure

There have been a variety

Recently a judge refused to send a

Criminal prosecutions CINC cases

Asset forfeiture cases

Defense arguments based on

I am not aware of any

To my knowledge there have not

Change in how Please elaborate

How do you know the marijuana was

In the specific cases I referenced in my

There have been a few cases in the county that

Prospective jurors in voir dire have provided

We have not seen anything or been

Our local deputies and sheriff

Always not sure if MJ is from

In addition to our local users, we have

Any other information

Criminal prosecutions CINC cases

Defense arguments based on

Asset forfeiture cases

How do you know the marijuana was

Defendants will often tell law

I took office in November 2014; as a result,

1 2 (not handled by this

Change in how Please elaborate

brownies and other

Just recently, we are

There have not been any official

Any other information

We have had an incident with

Minimal impact so far.

We have more drug cases involving marijuana

Nothing specific to Colorado. Marijuana as Most of the information regarding

Because of its close proximity to Kansas,

very minimal to non-existent

Minimal impact in our

Criminal prosecutions CINC cases

Asset forfeiture cases

Defense arguments based on

Change in how Please elaborate

How do you know the marijuana was

Officers are able to determine if it is

Overall, I think the fear of the effects of

Any other information

Criminal prosecutions CINC cases

Asset forfeiture cases

Defense arguments based on

Statistics are Reliable but Not Guaranteed