Solutions

An attack seizes Chaz Moore’s body, stealing much of his breath. Spasms in his throat, lungs and diaphragm cause the 17-year-old to speak in hiccups, one syllable at a time.

He’s 16 but his baby face makes him look a little older than 10, his age when he first tried marijuana.

Sometime on Saturday, Steve Ackerman sold his last joint. 

His Organic Alternatives, a medical marijuana dispensary in Fort Collins, is one of 23 in this laid-back university town forced to close by Tuesday after residents voted to ban dispensaries.

A handful of students from Denver’s East High School recently spent a warm January lunch period huddled against a brick home two blocks from the school, passing a joint and discussing the merits of medical marijuana.