What would legalized marijuana look like in the Last Frontier? Alaskans are in the midst of the debate surrounding Ballot Measure 2, the initiative seeking to legalize, tax and regulate recreational marijuana. In late September, Alaska Dispatch News headed to Washington state to see how the fledgling industry is taking shape and how legalized marijuana is affecting the state's economic and cultural landscape. Third of four parts.
SEATTLE -- Marijuana smoke lingered inside of a bright red bus parked across from a nightclub in Seattle's Capitol Hill neighborhood on a warm Saturday night.
Inside, all was dark. A few women lingered in the back of the bus. "It smells good in here," one man said as he climbed aboard.
Welcome to the Weed Bus Club, a party and tour bus that has hinged its business plan to smoking pot. Owned by William Prigmore, its premise is simple, as explained on its website: "You can smoke right on the bus!"
Prigmore was out promoting his business that night. He and his "street team," as he called them, loitered outside the bus doors as people hopped on and off. The bus would linger on the corner for about an hour that night before speeding away unexpectedly.
Smoking pot on vehicles is prohibited by law. But the Weed Bus continues to operate. Its competition -- another tour bus by the name of the Original Cannabus -- is riled by the fact its competitor is still on the streets despite flouting the law.
"It is the Wild West," Cannabus owner David Good said of the newly-legalized recreational market. "It's the Green Rush, and everybody does whatever they want."
In Washington, lawmakers aren't only deciding the regulations for marijuana producers and retailers, but for auxiliary businesses around the new industry, as well. Gaps in the law still exist, loopholes need to be closed. Entrepreneurs -- whether acting legally or not -- are caught up in these questions.
Should Alaska choose to legalize recreational marijuana in the Nov. 4 election, such gray areas of the law would also likely present themselves. Law enforcement would also need to weigh its priorities when it comes to enforcing marijuana activity that remains illegal.
Gray area
The owners of the Cannabus and Weed Bus both set their sights on the business potential of legalized marijuana. And both were conceived as spaces where people could go to smoke pot.
When Washington's initiative legalized recreational marijuana use this year, it came with the caveat that people cannot smoke in public view. All indoor smoking in public areas is also banned under Washington law. That means there is effectively nowhere that people can smoke, save private residences.
This presents a problem for tourists, and locals, looking to legally smoke weed in a social setting, outside their homes. "You can't legalize cannabis and say you can't smoke it anywhere," Good said. In Alaska, public consumption would also be banned.
The Cannabus and Weed Bus thought they had found a way around this conundrum: Allow people to smoke on their vehicles. The bus companies tour to dispensaries and other marijuana businesses. Sometimes they take people to and from the airport. The buses can be rented out for private events, as well.
Numerous media reports touted the Weed Bus Club's new business this summer. Soon the Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission issued a letter clarifying that smoking on vehicles was prohibited, a statement confirmed by the Seattle Police Department.
"I always have to give it to American entrepreneurs. They find a niche and this is no exception," city attorney Peter Holmes added. "The only thing that is predictable is something like this would come up, and we need time to figure out a response to it."
Prigmore said he wants to operate legally. He's aware of the controversy surrounding his business; such discussions have helped shed light on gaps in the law, he said. "I think it's just considered a gray area and the final say from the police was it's their lowest priority," he said.
Currently, the Weed Bus isn't licensed with Washington's Transportation Commission, spokesperson Amanda Maxwell said. Despite this fact, the bus continues to operate through a loophole in the law, Maxwell said. As long as the bus operates solely within Seattle, the state commission cannot inspect his vehicle, drug test his drivers, or issue any penalty. Enforcement duties now rest with the city of Seattle. Maxwell is hoping that loophole will be addressed during the state's next legislative session, and all charter buses will be placed under its jurisdiction.
When asked what regulatory agency monitors the Weed Bus, neither the Seattle Police Department, Holmes, the Transportation Commission nor the Seattle Transportation Department knew.
Low priority
While the Weed Bus isn't exactly legal, local law enforcement isn't doing much about it.
"I have not seen the bus. I've had zero complaints about the bus. I look at it as kind of a curiosity operating, at best, at the fringes," city attorney Holmes said. For Holmes, there are more pressing concerns -- notably, the medical marijuana market, which is largely unregulated.
Smoking marijuana in vehicles is illegal, the Seattle Police Department said, but it is responding to complaints as they arise. When it comes to open use of marijuana, "we are very responsive to community concerns and complaints, but beyond that, we typically don't seek it out," Sgt. Sean Whitcomb, Seattle Police Department spokesperson said.
"Ultimately our priorities are addressing violent crime, property crime, and street disorder," Whitcomb said.
Meanwhile, Good said the lax enforcement was hurting his operation. "There's no disciplinary action for any of that that's going on right now. So what do you do?" he shrugged. Good claimed he had been followed by street dealers who linger around the bus selling weed. He also claimed the Weed Bus has parked right behind them, siphoning off would-be clients.
In Alaska, proponents for legalizing marijuana argue that a legal market would help curb black market weed. In Washington, that make take years, officials say, and some are more pessimistic than others regarding the effect legalized marijuana actually has on illegal activity. One aspect is the role law enforcement plays in curbing illegal activity.
In a 2013 New Yorker article, UCLA professor and drug policy expert Mark Kleiman argued that a crackdown on the black market would have to increase in the short term. To stamp out the black market, law enforcement would need to arrest street dealers to encourage a switch to selling legally. When reached via phone in late September, he reiterated these points. "You want to hit hard at the illegal market. You want to have regulations that shape the way," Kleiman said.
In response to this argument, Whitcomb said, "we just want to take a moment to reflect that, for decades, this was criminal behavior and it's impacted many people and people have gone to jail or prison." After legalization, "Are we going to maintain the same business practices and approaches? Or is our approach going to be more tempered?"
In Alaska, Anchorage Police Chief Mark Mew said the department is weighing what shape enforcement would take should Alaska's initiative pass. "You're asking a question we're asking ourselves," Mew said.
Alaska Association of Chiefs of Police Executive Director Kalie Klaysmat said the role of law enforcement will depend on what final regulations would look like. She anticipated some stressors on the police force. "When we add a whole bunch of new regulations … there's going to be less time to enforce the others," she said.
'I'm not taking any risks'
That weekend, the Cannabus was also out on the streets of Seattle promoting its business. Parked near the CenturyLink Field during a Seahawks home game, driver Tony Johnson had stationed the bus in an alley as crowds tailgated before the start of a Seahawks game. "Canna-BUS!" one man shouted as he walked by. A handful of people took fliers. Many peeked inside, some asking whether the Cannabus was legal. One woman asked if they sold cigarettes. Others asked if the bus sold weed.
"If I sold pot off this bus, I'd be a millionaire," Johnson said.
Wearing a Seahawks jersey and matching hat, Cannabus owner Good explained with a booming voice that he had quit his job building houses to follow the Green Rush. "There's money to be made, and I want to make my mark," he said. He wouldn't disclose how much he had invested in the bus -- a spacious vehicle equipped with a refrigerator, carpet and specialty green lights lining the ceiling -- saying only that is was "a lot."
Good said that his bus has found a way to allow people to smoke during the tours: they've found a handful of "designated smoking stops" -- on private property, outside of public view, where people can smoke.
The Transportation Commission confirmed that the Cannabus was licensed by the state regulatory agency. Good said he jumped through all the hoops to protect his family. "I'm not taking any risks to get anyone in trouble."
Along the way, confusion over some regulations led him to invest in a door separating the driver and passenger, which the Transportation Commission later clarified did not make smoking legal on the bus.
Back on the bus
Back on the Weed Bus, Prigmore said that "business is great."
As his street team lingered around the bus, Prigmore disappeared, leaving them in charge. A group of women, some of whom appeared heavily intoxicated, stumbled out of a nearby bar, onto the bus and back off. One woman was having trouble standing up. Another woman removed the drunk woman's wedge platform shoes, and she slumped down, leaning on a tree with her head in her arms. Eventually her friends led her away, and she staggered barefoot down the street.
A few minutes later, the street crew noticed a pile of vomit right in front of the bus door. For the rest of the evening, people stepped over the splattered mess as they hopped on and off the bus.
A little later, the two women who had been lounging on the bus all evening were sharing a joint with another passenger.
Prigmore returned, and one of the women followed him off. She quickly got back on and announced with clasped hands that the Weed Bus was leaving. In a rush, the other woman, who moments before was taking drags off the blunt, hopped behind the wheel. Some passengers hoped off, others stayed on board.
Outside, two police cars sat behind them, questioning some people on the street in an unrelated situation. The Weed Bus sputtered to life and took off down the road, with Prigmore in another vehicle, leading the way.
Stoned driving is illegal, and Washington's initiative lays out the limits of THC a person may have in their blood. One of the biggest concerns voiced by Alaska police chiefs is a potential increase in stoned driving, the determination for which is a blood test that Anchorage Police Chief Mew said many small communities do not have proper infrastructure for.
When asked about the woman driving the Weed Bus, Prigmore, who had been absent most of the evening, said "I don't recall that."
Tomorrow: The issue of edibles