Colorado: Students encouraged to turn in pot smokers

I was absolutely disgusted when I read this article this morning and equally disgusted when I visited the Colorado.edu Police Photo Page and saw several photos labeled "IDENTIFIED". I can't believe that peers would do something so vile as to turn a fellow student over to campus police for smoking a joint.

We as hardworking common citizens of this country should be very alarmed at how quick a state institution would attempt to turn friends against each other in college, usually considered a right of passage in American society. This cowardly, passive-aggressive attempt at police "work" cannot be tolerated by UofC students or parents who put money in the pockets of such men that would so quickly turn our children's reputations into that of child molesters.

Please contact the University of Colorado Police Department Operations section at 303-492-8168 to tell them what you think about their cowardly assault on their own student body.

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BOULDER â?? Hundreds of people called University of Colorado police Friday to name people photographed at last weekâ??s â??4/20â?� marijuana smoke-out on Farrand Field.

Police posted 150 pictures online Thursday of people lighting up, exhaling and even streaking at the annual event. For each positive identification, CU is offering a $50 reward.

Tipsters, who will remain anonymous to the offenders but not to police, began calling early Friday, said CU police Lt. Tim McGraw.

â??The phones have been ringing off the hook,â?� he said. â??One person called in and IDâ??d five people.â?�

Andrea Hansen, 19, was among the estimated 2,500 people who gathered at 4:20 p.m. April 20. When she heard about the online photos Thursday night, she visited the site immediately. The CU freshman said she was relieved to see she had succeeded in avoiding the cameras, but some of her peers werenâ??t so lucky.

â??There are two pictures of my friend,â?� Hansen said. â??She got all freaked out.â?�
If police canâ??t confirm that those identified in the pictures were puffing marijuana, they still can be ticketed for trespassing on the closed CU field, officials said.

A person must be charged and cited for tipsters to be rewarded.

Hansen said she was surprised to hear that hundreds of people had responded to the police departmentâ??s reward offer.

â??But $50 is a sack,â?� she said, referring to the price of marijuana. â??So thereâ??s your incentive.â?�

A Boulder-based group that advocates marijuana as a safer alternative to alcohol said Friday that CUâ??s attempt to punish the 4/20 revelers is â??cowardly.â?� Mason Tvert, campaign director for Safer Alternative for Enjoyable Recreation, said CU is treating pot-smoking students like â??child molestersâ?� by â??sticking their photos online.â?�

â??I think this is unbelievable,â?� he said. â??Theyâ??re using money to turn this campus into a culture of informants. If they asked students to call in every time they saw a student drinking, it would be an incredible mess.â?�

Tvert said CU should be focusing its efforts on alcohol abuse and encouraged anyone pictured online to call his organization.

â??Iâ??m sure there will be lawyers and other people upset about this,â?� he said. â??I donâ??t know what we can do for them, but weâ??re hoping for some public outcry because this is clearly a waste of time and money.â?�

Lt. McGraw said alcohol abuse is a top priority but that CU has to discourage blatant marijuana smoking.

CU spokesman Barrie Hartman said he didnâ??t know how long it would take to identify and charge the pictured suspects. Students could face a $100 fine and a â??strikeâ?� against their school record, CU officials said.

â??But school is out very soon,â?� he said. â??So the clock is working against us on this thing.â?�

The â??4/20â?� smoke-out has been drawing crowds for years, but this is the first year CU police have tried to catch participants with online pictures. Hartman said he thinks CU will succeed in charging a â??representative sample, to set an example.â?�

But Marc Muniz, 22, said he doesnâ??t think anyone will get in trouble.

â??I just think the police are trying to appease the citizens and make it look like theyâ??re doing something,â?� said Muniz, a CU senior. â??But I donâ??t think theyâ??re going to get anything done.â?�

I saw this story and I just have to say......my god. How fucken dumb are these people really?? They posted people on a website because they were smoking pot! OOOO ya they smoke pot! Uh oh!!! They did a terrible thing!!! Let's post their picture on the Internet and give someone $50 for turning them in! Yea we're doing justice!!!!

FUCKEN NAZIS!!!!!!

And they wouldn't do jack shit if underagers were drinking....but they create a website and pay people to snitch on people who choose a safer natural drug to use for enjoyment.

Ya know in Amsterdam, cops laugh their asses off by this sort of shit because they know how much of a failure the Drug War really is. At least they don't have to worry about getting shot by drug dealers anymore. They know drug addiction is a health concern and very few people use hard drugs because they have separated weed from hard drugs.

That is absolute bullshit. I want to kick that bitches ass, "$50 is a sack, blah blah blah". What a sell out... wtf is wrong with people? All those kids were having a good time, not bothering anyone.

This world has lost its mind.Im moving to mexico.They are about to legalize small quantities of marajuana,coke,heroin,and a whole asortment of party drugs.

More kids "identified" since I posted this article. This is still the most relevant development in our scene. Please give these "good" officers a call and tell them what you think about them scaring kids that are paying big bucks to put money in their pockets.

Education > Ego > Government > Stupidity.

This WILL happen at your school.