By STEVE WEBSTER
Great Bend Post

BARTON COUNTY -Last month, the federal government sided with Colorado in a lawsuit filed with the U.S. Supreme Court by Oklahoma and Nebraska, which claim that Colorado marijuana laws should be dismantled due to residual harm being caused across state lines. Kansas hasn’t joined the suit, but Attorney General Derek Schmidt, appears to be gathering evidence that would bolster the case being made by these states. Earlier this month, his office announced that it was sending surveys to prosecutors and law-enforcement officials in an effort to determine how much Colorado cannabis is negatively impacting the state of Kansas.

“It used to be we thought all of our marijuana was coming from Mexico,” said Barton County Sheriff Brian Bellendir.

“I’m convinced it’s all coming from Colorado and I don’t have any proof of that. It’s a much higher grade, more potent product than we saw coming from Mexico and the people we bust tell us it’s coming from Colorado.”

Bellendir has his opinion on what impact Colorado pot is having on the state.

Great Bend Police Chief Cliff Couch knows all about Colorado pot moving through Kansas. Before coming to Great Bend he was the Chief of Police in Goodland on Interstate 70.

“Highway Patrol Officers would tell me they’d pull someone over and the driver would tell them I’ve got marijuana in my car I bought in Colorado, it’s okay. No it’s not you’re in Kansas so you’re going to jail, explained Couch.

“It’s an issue and I think even before they legalized it we tended to think most of it was coming from Colorado because they already had medicinal use of it.”

As for that survey, Schmidt’s staffers have distributed more than 500 surveys, with one version tailored to sheriffs and police chiefs and the other created with county and district attorneys in mind.