Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40AMERICAN POLICE BEAT: JUNE 2016 13 L ast April 20th , police officers and agencies had some fun on so- cial media. In “honor” of the unof- ficial holiday recognized by people who use marijuana, law enforcement profession- als posted pictures of bags of Doritos in makeshift traps made of cardboard boxes. One agency even had a fake “We’ll judge your bud!” contest where entrants were encouraged to bring in a pound of their stickiest, stinkiest product so the cops could pick the winner. So clearly, at least as far as the stance taken on mari- juana by local law enforce- ment agencies, things are changing fast. And the DEA has just ap- proved medical trials that will allow combat veterans suffering from the debilitat- ing impact of PTSD to use cannabis to relieve their symptoms. But if you really want to see just how far the needle has moved on this thing, for- get the public polling num- bers showing that about 60 percent of Americans now approve of decriminalizing marijuana entirely. The place to look is wher- ever there are entrepreneur- ial and retired law enforce- ment professionals. In New Mexico, former two-term Bernalillo County Sheriff Darren White has a new gig. He’s the CEO and security director of one of the state’s new medical marijuana providers. He’s also a patient. White says he tried med- ical cannabis about two years ago to treat worsening chronic pain from decades old knee and back injuries. “A steady diet of consum- ing painkillers is not quality of life,” White said in an interview with the ABQ Jour- nal. White is just one of a growing number of former law enforcement executives getting on the ground floor of the medical marijuana industry. In 1999, White stepped down as secretary of the New Mexico Department of Public Safety, because he disagreed with then-Gover- nor Gary Johnson’s stand on legalizing drugs, including marijuana. But that was before mari- juana as medicine started scaring the crap out of the pharmaceutical industry. White suffered from chronic pain from a back injury he received as an Albuquerque police officer and a knee injury from his service in the U.S. Army. “When you suffer from chronic pain, there’s noth- ing you can do about it,” he said. “Mine over the years had gotten progressively worse.” As was frequently the case in those days, the only option was wildly addictive and extremely narcotic opi- oid painkillers like Oxycon- tin. It took personal experi- ence in order to change White’s mind on the issue. He says he was dead set against medical cannabis, “but I think, like a lot of things, I was wrong about it.” What’s so interesting is that in times gone by people’s views on the issue used to be based largely on politics and the culture wars. Increasing- ly though, it’s now personal experience that’s driving the change in attitudes, policies and outcomes. Former bosses working in cannabis industry TEIJIN ARAMID USA, INC. | 800.451.6586 | teijinaramid.com There’s a soft side to our tough exterior When it comes to body armor, Twaron® combines the best of both worlds — exceptional ballistic protection and lighter weight construction. Twaron microfilament fibers contain 50% more ballistic filaments than traditional aramid fibers yet weigh 40% less. This patented technology provides enhanced comfort, increased mobility and maximum ballistic protection. Body armor made with Twaron is easy-to-fit and more comfortable, allowing you to work at peak efficiency. Stay focused on the tasks at hand without the bulk and restrictive nature associated with conventional body armor — specify Twaron.