DENVER (AP) -- The director of the state's medical marijuana enforcement division has come under fire for a letter he wrote warning of the effects of dispensary bans.
Mesa County Sheriff Stan Hilkey says the letter by Dan Hartman shows an apparent coziness between regulators and the industry and erodes trust between local law enforcement and the agency. The letter was circulated by opponents of a proposed ban on dispensaries in Palisade and rejected as an opinion piece by a newspaper.
Hartman did not return messages seeking comment. Attorney General John Suthers reviewed the letter and found it unethical, but not illegal.
Hartman's letter says dispensary bans remove his division's ability to enforce state regulations while failing to eradicate medical marijuana in the community because it's allowed under a voter-approved amendment.
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