The line was drawn in the grass Thursday.
Eric Footer and his team of attorneys gave Denver city officials formal notice that they will fight his citation for possessing less than an ounce of marijuana.
Footer was pulled over by Denver officers Nov. 17, the day after an initiative went into effect saying possession of less than an ounce of marijuana is permissible in Denver.
“I was under the impression that because voters approved the law, I wasn’t doing anything illegal,” Footer said. “I guess I was surprised. I didn’t think it was illegal. I didn’t understand why I was cited.”
Instead, officials in Denver have said that most marijuana cases are prosecuted under state rather than city law so police will continue to make arrests as usual.
Footer, 39, a real estate consultant, says he has medical problems and uses marijuana to ease pain.
One of his attorneys, Brian Vicente, said he will argue that Denver voters made possession of up to an ounce of marijuana legal in the city and will claim that it was better for Footer to smoke marijuana than drink liquor.
