Washington will join Colorado in the coming months as the second state in the U.S. to open retail storefronts that sell marijuana. While Federal law still prohibits the sale, possession and use of the controlled substance, the Obama administration has made it clear that retailers and recreational users in those two states will not be prosecuted according to Federal statutes.
When it comes to servicemembers stationed in Washington, however, they are still prohibited from marijuana use, according to Military.com. An official from Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Tacoma, Wash., said in an interview that the Armed Forces' policy on the substance has been made very clear to soldiers stationed at the installation. Regardless of the legality applied to civilians, troops are still prohibited from any indulgences.
No pot for soldiers
It may not come as a surprise to many that servicemembers will not be allowed to partake in Washington's progression toward legalized recreational marijuana use, and Lt. Gen. Stephen Lanza is taking care to make the military's policy clear to the troops under his command at Joint Base Lewis-McChord.
"Our soldiers understand what's legal," Lanza said in an interview, as quoted by Military.com. "From our perspective, marijuana or any type of illegal drug is something that's not tolerated."
Lanza's comments join a similar prohibition on marijuana use for National Guardsmen in Washington. Moreover, the Armed Forces do not distinguish between medicinal and recreational uses of the substance. Even new recruits who enlist after Washington makes marijuana use fully legal for civilians are not grandfathered in to any kind of lax policy.
No smoke over the Rocky Mountains
Servicemembers in Washington will be similarly prohibited from marijuana use as their counterparts in Colorado, which is almost a year ahead of the former state in terms of an established retail market for the substance. In Colorado, it is not only legal to buy and sell marijuana, but individuals may also grow a small number of plants for their own personal use.
Rep. Mike Coffman, R.-Colo., told The Colorado Springs Gazette that servicemembers should be afforded the same rights as other citizens of the state.
"We're the first state to step out with legalization of marijuana, but the military isn't stepping out with us," Coffman told the paper in a telephone interview.
In conversations with military officials, Coffman was told that marijuana is banned on grounds that it could decrease the combat readiness of its troops, though off duty soldiers are prohibited from recreational use just the same.