The NMHA would not allow commercial sales of mushrooms, either in stores or person-to-person — instead, it is setting up a model where people can grow mushrooms for personal use and pass them on to others. But Dunn, the former U.S. attorney, believes that this would only cover an underground market. Ballots for the midterm elections will be mailed out in mid-October. Election day is November 8. Since learning that the Natural Medicine Health Act will be on the fall ballot, Anable said she was persuaded to speak out. In 2020, 55% of Oregon voters passed an initiative to legalize recreational psychedelics. Starting next year, Oregon residents will be able to use psilocybin at licensed service centers rather than at home, according to the Oregon Health Authority. However, proponents of the initiative argue that it will take too long for the federal government to act and deny people access to a link they believe is beneficial. Following Tuesday`s election, Colorado voters passed Proposition 122, a voting initiative that will decriminalize and regulate certain psychedelics. Heather Anable and her boyfriend Aleksandr Kolpakov had both taken psychoactive mushrooms the night before, according to a witness who was with them during a video call. Kolpakov`s toxicology results were negative for psilocybin, but prosecutors said there were testing difficulties, and all other evidence suggested he had taken mushrooms.

Investigators also learned that Kolpakov had had bad experiences with mushrooms the previous week. In 2020, Oregon became the first state to legalize psilocybin and decriminalize all drugs. · An advisory board will be tasked with making recommendations for adding substances to the program, and the state regulator could then approve those recommended additions. “My fear is that (Colorado) will legalize mushrooms and in 10 years there will be a bunch of really sick people,” she said. “And the state will say in 10 years, `Oh, we`re sorry. » READ MORE: Maryland legalizes marijuana, Arkansas, North Dakota reject Colorado voters have passed a voting initiative to decriminalize psychedelic mushrooms for people 21 and older and create state-regulated “healing centers” where patients can experiment with the drug under supervision. The initiative allows the use of psilocybin in state-regulated centers under the supervision of licensed moderators. It also legalizes the personal private use, cultivation and sharing of psilocybin and psilocin, as well as three other psychedelic compounds — DMT, ibogaine, and mescaline — by adults over the age of 21.

Retail sale is not permitted and the law has several restrictions, including those prohibiting its use in public, at school or while driving a vehicle. “We have officially recognized that Proposition 122 will happen,” Luke Niforatos wrote in a tweet Thursday morning. Niforatos is the CEO of Protect Colorado`s Kids, a group that opposed Proposition 122. Colorado legalized magic mushrooms in this week`s midterm elections, with the group that opposed the election issue conceding defeat before the race was triggered. Proposal 122 was adopted with 52% of the vote. Washington, D.C. and Denver have partially decriminalized psychedelic mushrooms by requiring law enforcement officials to treat them as their lowest priority. Gov. Jared Polis has until Jan. 31 to appoint 15 members to the National Medical Advisory Board, which will report to Colorado`s Department of Regulatory Agencies, according to the secretary of state`s website. “This was a case we wouldn`t have had to deal with without the mushrooms,” said David Waite, assistant district attorney for Mesa County.

“His consumption of mushrooms was irresponsible, which led to very bizarre behavior on his part and ultimately led to his death.” A recent report by the National Forensic Laboratory Information System found that fungi accounted for less than 1 percent of samples sent by law enforcement for analysis. Colorado`s election measure comes 10 years after she and Washington state voters passed voting initiatives to legalize recreational marijuana for adult residents. “(Kolpakov) said he saw demons and Heather tried to kill him,” lead investigator Peter Burg said. “He also talked about how the mushrooms were poisoned.” “Under the influence (of the mushrooms), my daughter didn`t realize the very bad situation and the real danger she was in,” she said. “Someone reported that his last words were, `I can`t believe it. Colorado is the second state to legalize psychedelics after Oregon passed a similar election question in 2020. Like Oregon, Colorado plans to create licensed “healing centers” where people can take magic mushrooms under supervision. In cases where the Denver Police Department seized mushrooms, associated arrests remained relatively constant before and after the measure. From 2017 to 2021, police made an average of about 59 of these arrests per year. Matthews said his own life changed when he tried psilocybin mushrooms.

After leaving West Point, he said he felt lost and struggled with depression. He tried therapy, yoga, self-help books and meditation – but he didn`t feel much change to the mushrooms. Denver hasn`t completely decriminalized — law enforcement should instead treat personal use and possession of psilocybin mushrooms as their lowest priority. Thus, Denver police continued to discover and seize mushrooms while investigating other crimes such as theft or theft. Western scientists began studying psilocybin in the late 1950s, but the criminalization of psychedelic mushrooms halted studies in the United States until the 2000s. The passage of the measure comes four years after Denver became the first U.S. city to decriminalize psilocybin, or hallucinogenic mushrooms. Some studies have linked cannabis use to an increased risk of developing psychosis, according to the National Institute on Substance Abuse, although the relationship between the two appears complicated. Although cannabis and psychoactive mushrooms differ in their chemical properties and effects, Boyd said after his family`s experience that there was no way they would vote to legalize the mushrooms. Matthew Stoneberger, president of the Colorado Drug Investigators Association, said arrests for possession and distribution of psilocybin are relatively rare. Still, he worries that legalizing or decriminalizing mushrooms could be risky.

Matthews believes this trend supports his argument that legalization won`t lead to an increase in crime overall, because despite decriminalization in Denver, mushroom users don`t seem to be breaking the law more often than before. The move comes a decade after Colorado voted to legalize recreational marijuana after initially allowing its use for medical reasons, leading to a multibillion-dollar industry with hundreds of dispensaries across the state. In addition to their hopes for health benefits, proponents also say the measure will ensure people don`t face incarceration or other potentially dangerous legal consequences. Opponents of the law come from several camps. Some, like Niforatos, say research on psilocybin is limited and that allowing legal access is a danger to children and the community. Colorado is the second state, after Oregon, to vote to establish a regulated system for substances like psilocybin and psilocin, the hallucinogens in certain mushrooms. The initiative, which would take effect in 2024, will also allow an advisory board to add more plant-based psychedelics to the program in 2026. Last June, Colorado Governor Jared Polis signed a bill to legalize MDMA prescriptions if the federal government finally allowed such use. With elections just months away, popular opposition to the Natural Medicine Health Act is growing as some voters and law enforcement officials point to the potential risks. However, the organizers of the voting initiative argue that creating a legal framework for mushrooms would actually benefit public health and safety. The measure will allow people 21 and older to grow and share psilocybin mushrooms, as well as create state-regulated centers where people can make appointments to consume the mushrooms. The proposal will also create “healing centers” to give customers mushrooms in a supervised environment, but will not create “mushroom dispensaries” as cannabis is sold and bought.

“I want Colorado voters to know and understand that while some people claim to have benefited, (mushrooms) are not a magic cure or a magic pill for certain mental illnesses,” she said. “This can have disastrous negative consequences.” · Psilocybin and psilocyn will be approved for therapeutic use in licensed healing centers until June 2026. After that, regulators may decide whether or not to authorize the regulated therapeutic use of DMT, ibogaine and mescaline; Dunn cites the partial decriminalization of mushrooms in Denver as an example of the complexity of law enforcement when a substance enters quasi-legal territory. He remembers the United States. The prosecution is prosecuting a mushroom farmer and trader who had given numerous media interviews without going to great lengths to hide his identity. The man pleaded guilty to possession with intent to distribute it, but the judge only gave him a conditional sentence and said she did not believe a jail sentence was warranted. Currently, Oregon is the only state to legalize psychedelics. This approach would make the use of mushrooms safer, said the initiative`s organizer, Kevin Matthews.