Denver voters will weigh in for the decriminalization of magic mushrooms

Denver's reputation at the kilometer level could get a boost after psychedelic drug advocates were given the go-ahead to urge voters to city ​​to decriminalize magic mushrooms.

The Denver Psilocybin Mushroom Decriminalization Initiative will ask voters in May to approve an order that would make possession of the drug, whatever its weight, legal for those 21 years of age and older. They could also grow it. The bill, however, would not legalize retail sales, making the city an international player in the world of cannabis.

The Elections Division of the city stated that the organizers had submitted enough valid signatures to qualify for the May 7th municipal ballot. Kevin Matthews, director of the campaign, said it would be the first time that the decriminalization of psilocybin would be presented to US voters.

The campaign's long-term goal is to educate the public about the drug and put users behind bars.

"I do not anticipate a recreational cannabis model in the near future," he said.

The measure aims to put a stop to the criminal penalties applicable to the use and possession of psilocybin mushrooms. Its limitless component results from the nature of the mushrooms as a heavy and wet mushroom that is then dried, said Matthews. Proponents say that prosecutors do not always recognize the difference, but that law enforcement is changing.

"We are a pretty progressive city in drug policy," said Matthews, referring to the decriminalization of marijuana in the mid-2000s and to the state's legal recreational sales have started in 2014.

"Marijuana has somehow opened the door," he said.

Matthew W. Johnson, professor of psychiatry and behavioral science at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, has studied psilocybin for potential use in the treatment of prostate cancer. anxiety and depression in cancer patients.