WAY TO START OUR SUNDAY. IT'S BEEN A BEAUTIFUL WEEKEND, HASN'T IT? ALL RIGHT TIME NOW, 9 44 THIS TUESDAY. RECREATIONAL MARIJUANA BECOMES LEGAL IN MINNESOTA FOR ADULTS, 21 AND OLDER PEOPLE WILL BE ALLOWED TO HAVE £2 OF MARIJUANA AT HOME AND UP TO TWO OUNCES OF CANNABIS OUT IN PUBLIC, AND WHILE IT'S UP TO INDIVIDUAL CITIES WHETHER OR NOT MARIJUANA CAN BE USED IN PUBLIC STATEWIDE. IT IS NOT ALLOWED WHILE DRIVING ON FEDERAL PROPERTY OR IN VIRTUALLY ALL INDOOR PUBLIC PLACES OR WORKPLACES. SO HOW IS THE LAW ENFORCEMENT COMMUNITY PREPARING FOR THIS BIG CHANGE? JOINING US NOW IS A SHERIFF KEVIN TORGERSEN , SHERIFF OF OLMSTEAD COUNTY AND LONGTIME MEMBER OF THE MINNESOTA SHERIFFSASSOCIATION. GOOD MORNING, SHERIFF. THANKS FOR JOINING US. MORNING LIA. GOOD TO BE WITH YOU. WE KNOW THAT THERE'S BEEN SO MUCH DEBATE OVER THIS. WE KNOW IN LARGE PART ENFORCEMENT IS AGAINST THIS. THAT ASIDE, IT'S HAPPENING TUESDAY. SO HOW ARE YOU AND OTHER SHERIFFS ACROSS THE STATE ? PREPARING YOUR DEPUTIES AND YOUR STAFF FOR THIS CHANGE? YEAH WELL, IT'S THE FIRST THING WAS JUST REALLY STARTING TO UNDERSTAND THE LAW. THERE WAS THERE'S A COUPLE OF THINGS THAT COME OUT WHEN YOU HAVE LEGISLATIVE CHANGES. BASICALLY BIG ONES LIKE THIS IS WHAT'S THE LEGISLATIVE INTENT WHERE THEY TRYING TO DO? AND THEN HOW DOES IT HOW DOES IT ACTUALLY WORK ON THE STREET? I WAS ACTUALLY WORKING FOR THE DEPUTIES, AND THAT'S WHAT WE'RE TRYING TO SORT THROUGH, NOT ONLY WITH OURSELVES AND CHIEFS OF POLICE BUT ALSO THE COUNTY ATTORNEY'S ASSOCIATION. SO FOR US IN HOMESTEAD, WE HAD A MEETING AGAIN ON FRIDAY WITH OUR COUNTY ATTORNEY AND SOME OF THEIR MEMBERS AND OUR CORRECTIONS STAFF. UM JUST TRYING TO SORT IT OUT. AND HOW ARE WE GOING TO ENFORCE WHAT WE CAN AND, YOU KNOW, USE CAUTION WHERE WE WHERE WE HAVE CONCERNS RIGHT? AND WE KNOW AS I MENTIONED PEOPLE WILL BE ALLOWED TO HAVE £2 AT HOME, BUT TO HOW TWO OUNCES AWAY FROM HOME, LET'S USE THE COMMON TRAFFIC STOP AS AN EXAMPLE. HOW IS THAT GOING TO CHANGE WHETHER YOU HAVE TO SMELL IT IN ORDER TO ASK SOMEONE ABOUT IT? IF YOU SEE ANNOUNCES, HOW DO YOU KNOW IF IT'S TWO OUNCES OR FOUR OUNCES? WELL THAT'S THAT'S THE TRICK. AND UH, WE'RE TRYING TO DETERMINE THAT SO OKAY. WHAT WHAT IS TWO OUNCES? HOW DO YOU LOOK AND SEE WHAT TWO OUNCES IS ? IF SOMEBODY HAS IT IN THE CONSOLE OF THEIR, UM HMM. THEIR CAR AND YOU CAN SEE IT. AH ROUGHLY TWO OUNCES IS, UH ENOUGH ABOUT THE SIZE OF AN ADULT MALES HAND MAYBE BIGGER THAN A TENNIS BALL. NOT QUITE A SOFTBALL SIZE , SO THAT'S A ROUGH ESTIMATE. OBVIOUSLY TWO OUNCES YOU HAVE TO WEIGH IT AND £2 WHEN YOU LOOK AT THAT IT'S A LARGE FOOTBALL SO LARGER THAN AN NFL FOOTBALL. UM AND BIGGER THAN THAT YET, UM, SO HOW DO YOU DETERMINE THAT AGAIN? THAT'S THAT'S THE TRICK. SO TO GET INTO THAT, YES, THE ORDER OF MARIJUANA VERY DISTINCT. I THINK PEOPLE THAT HAVE BEEN AROUND IT AND ALL THE HOW DIFFERENT THAT IS FROM CIGARETTE SMOKE. UM IT HAS A VERY DISTINCT ORDER. SO THAT'S ONE ON A TRAFFIC STOP. AND THEN SECONDLY, OBVIOUSLY, THEN IT'S GOING TO BE THE IMPAIRMENT DRIVING BACK IN HERE. AND THE BEHAVIOR OF THE INDIVIDUAL. UM AND OBVIOUSLY, IF IT'S PRESENT THAT'S GOING TO ALLOW THE OFFICER OH, TOU. TAKE SOME EXTRA STEPS AND AGAIN, IT'S LIKE HEALTH. BUT. OH STILL DIFFERENT THERE, UM, CIGARETTES OR VAPE PEN OR YOU KNOW ANYTHING LIKE THAT IN YOUR VEHICLE AVAILABLE AND ACCESSIBLE WHILE YOU'RE DRIVING, SO IT'S NO DIFFERENT THAN ALCOHOL AS FAR AS ACTORS, SO I THINK THE BIG PIECE OF THIS WE'RE TRYING TO EDUCATE OUR OFFICERS AND DEPUTIES AND TROOPERS. WE ALSO NEED TO EDUCATE THE PUBLIC AND I APPRECIATE THE OPPORTUNITY HERE . MAYBE SOMEBODY'S GONNA LISTEN . WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR CANINE TEAMS? ARE THEY GOING TO BE EVEN BUSIER AND IN HIGHER DEMAND? WELL, CANINES CAN'T WE'RE NOT GOING TO BE ABLE TO USE THOSE THAT CAN STILL OR ARE TRAINED TO DETECT MARIJUANA BECAUSE MARIJUANA IS LEGAL, SO THEY'RE ONLY SUPPOSED TO BE ABLE TO SEARCH FOR ILLEGAL SUBSTANCES. SO ANY CANINE TEAMS, CANINE HANDLERS AND DOGS THAT ARE STILL ABLE AND ONLY A TRAINED TO SMOKE OR SMELL MARIJUANA. ARE BASICALLY RETIRED. THEY'RE DONE . UM SO FOR OUR OFFICE FOR THE LAST FIVE YEARS ANTICIPATING THIS, WE'VE BEEN TRAINING THE DOGS THAT DO DETECTS ILLEGAL SUBSTANCES TO NOT DETECT MARIJUANA. SO WE'VE GOT TWO DOGS THAT CAN'T BE USED IN THAT CAPACITY ANYMORE. AND I HAVE NO IDEA HOW MANY AROUND THE STATE OR LIKE THAT. UM BUT THAT'S A THAT'S A BIG TRAINING PIECE, SOMETHING WE BROUGHT TO LEGISLATORS. UM AND SAID, THIS IS GOING TO BE A BIG IMPACT. IT'S 20 $25,000 TO JUST GET A NEW CANINE AND GET THE HANDLER AND THAT THAT CAME NINE TRAINS. SO UM, THAT'S A LOT OF MONEY FOR ESPECIALLY SMALL AGENCIES THAT MAY NOT HAVE THAT LAYING AROUND , BUT THERE'S A LOT OF MONEY. WE KNOW. ONE THING THAT'S COME UP IS WHETHER PEOPLE CAN USE MARIJUANA IN PUBLIC IS UP TO INDIVIDUAL CITIES. HOW IS THAT IMPACTING SOMEONE LIKE YOU AND DEPUTIES? COVER MANY, MANY MILES AND AN ENTIRE COUNTY IN MULTIPLE CITIES. DO YOU HAVE ANY ANY PARTICULAR CITIES IN OLMSTEAD COUNTY THAT ARE CHANGING, BUT ALSO JUST AS A WHOLE. HOW ARE YOU KNOW WHEN YOU HAVE A JURISDICTION SO LARGE? HOW IS THAT CHANGING AND COMPLICATING THINGS? IT'S GOING TO BE COMPLICATED, BUT WE'RE USED TO THAT. IN SOME WAYS. THEY'RE CURFEWS ARE DIFFERENT. EACH OF OUR CITIES SO WE'LL ADJUST. BUT UH, CITY ROCHESTER, WHICH IS OUR COUNTY SEAT. THEY JUST HAD A COUNCIL MEETING LAST WEEK. AND THEY, UM IT MADE SOME DECISIONS AND HAD SOME DISCUSSION ABOUT WHAT THEY'RE GOING TO DO. THEY DID NOT RESTRICT IT PUBLICLY YET, BUT THEY DID DO IS THEY RESTRICTED UNTIL JANUARY, 2025 THE ABILITY TO HAVE ANY DISPENSARIES PLACED IN ROCHESTER , WHICH I DON'T KNOW THAT THEY'RE GOING TO BE THERE AND READY BY THAT TIME ANYWAY, UM, BUT I KNOW THERE'S OTHER CITIES AROUND THE STATE AND MOST OF OUR SMALL CITIES THAT WE HAVE AROUND ROCHESTER ARE ALL TALKING ABOUT PUBLIC EVENTS, PUBLIC SITUATIONS , SIDEWALKS, PARKS, THINGS LIKE THAT AND SETTING RESTRICTIONS ON THAT, AND FIRST WHEN HE HAD AN ORDINANCE. IT'S JUST GONNA YOU KNOW, I THINK PART OF THE LEGISLATIVE INTENT IN THIS WAS TO, UH, GET AWAY FROM CONTENTIOUS RELATIONSHIPS IN SITUATIONS WHERE PEOPLE WITH LAW ENFORCEMENT I ARGUED MANY TIMES THAT THIS IS GONNA CREATE MORE PROBLEMS AND CREATE MORE CONTENTIOUS SITUATIONS BETWEEN LAW ENFORCEMENT HAVING TO ENFORCE THESE ORDINANCES OR SIMPLY JUST EDUCATE PEOPLE. ON THE CHANGES IN THESE ORDINANCES , AND YOU CAN'T SMOKE HERE. YOU CAN'T GO HERE. I MEAN, JUST THIS WEEK IN OUR COUNTY FAIR, THERE'S RESTRICTIONS ON WHERE PEOPLE CAN HAVE ALCOHOL. SO IT'S NOT ANY DIFFERENT THAN OTHER RESTRICTIONS THAT WE HAVE. AND WE, YOU KNOW, OUR DEPUTIES ARE ASKED TO ENFORCED AND TRY TO EDUCATE PEOPLE THERE. OKAY DURING THE FAIR, YOU CAN'T HAVE ALCOHOL IN THIS AREA WHERE THOSE KIDS AND EVENTUALLY ON TIME WILL TELL JUST HAPPY THERE BECAUSE WE'RE OUT OF TIME. TIME WILL TELL AND WE'LL SEE ALL HOW IT PLAYS OUT AND WE'LL ABSOLUTELY HAVE T
