Legal weed in U.S. could spell trouble for Canadian pot tourists

The 2012 referendums that legalized recreational use and licensed sale of marijuana in Washington and Colorado is expected to open up new tourism opportunities for those states, but if you're planning a trip (so to speak), don't expect a completely free pass from authorities.

Washington's Liquor Control Board is set to table the rules governing public sale of legal pot under Initiative 502 next month, though retail sales likely won't roll out until sometime next year.

But while state and municipal law enforcement won't be coming after anyone for weed possession as long as it's not being smoked in public, for the feds it's business as usual.

That means a Canadian planning a pot pilgrimage south will find themselves getting turned back if they declare that fact at the border.

"The changes in Washington state law have not changed how we process people at the border," Michael Milne of U.S. Customs and Border Security told The Canadian Press.

Travellers are usually asked the purpose of their visit to the U.S., and border agents sometimes ask drug-related questions.

"It's not something that we're asking 100 per cent of the people who come across," Milne told CP. "If we saw an indication and needed to drill down to make an admissibility decision on a case-by-case basis, that's how we do it."

[ Related: U.S. marijuana legalization threatening health of lucrative B.C. bud business ]

Lawyers are already dealing with cases of Canadians who've blurted out their drug use. Foreigners who admit to consuming illegal drugs can be denied admission on grounds of "moral turpitude."

Len Saunders, a lawyer in Blaine, Wash., just south of Vancouver, told CP he deals with a couple of such cases a month, including a White Rock, B.C., resident Jessica Goldstein, barred from the U.S. last summer after admitting she'd recently smoked pot.

Goldstein, 30, told the Vancouver Sun she and two friends were going to a concert when a border agent asked if she'd ever used marijuana. She replied she had smoked pot the previous weekend.

That earned her several hours of interrogation, in which she said she gave a truthful account of her drug history.

“Then she gave me a paper saying I was inadmissible to the U.S. and that I can’t cross unless I get a waiver," Goldstein, who owns property in Washington and has relatives in California, told the Sun. "They turned us around and we had to drive back.”

Saunders is attempting to get Goldstein a waiver, which she said would cost $600.

The immigration lawyer said he things will only pick up as Washington's new pot business rolls out.

"I'm expecting my business to boom," he said.

Part of the problem is a lack of concordance between the states where pot is suddenly OK, and Washington, D.C. The liquor control board's FAQs on Initiative 502 makes it clear that federal law hasn't changed, though the two levels of government are "maintaining an open dialogue." The legal divergence is especially serious when it comes to newly legal growers.

"Presently Washington state residents involved in marijuana production /retailing could still be subject to prosecution if the federal government chooses to do so," the control board says in its FAQs.

State and local cops are also concerned about stoned drivers. The Washington State Patrol has found a spike in the number of drivers who've tested positive for THC, marijuana's active ingredient, since legalization, the New York Daily News reported.

[ Related: Why it’s time to legalize marijuana ]

Immigration lawyer Scott Railton of Bellingham, Wash., about an hour south of Vancouver, advises Canadians just to forget heading to Washington so they can legally smoke up.

"Until the Department of Homeland Security offers direct guidance to say this is OK, it's very conceivable for me that a person could encounter admissibility issues," Railton told CP.

"So, that being true, right now I would advise them not to use marijuana under Washington's rules. There are just a lot of unanswered questions."

For Canadians who simply must sample the climate in what what's being touted as the Amsterdam of North America, Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) also has a warning.

Unlike their U.S. counterparts, Canadian border agents don't routinely as drug-related questions, and foreigners who admit drug use aren't necessarily barred from entering Canada.

But CBSA spokeswoman Faith St. John told CP if officers think someone's been in contact with drugs, they may conduct a more detailed inspection.

[ Related: Suspected drug-impaired drivers facing unfair treatment compared to boozy counterparts ]

"People should be aware that even if they have purchased marijuana legally in Washington state, it is still a crime to transport it across the border," St. John said in a statement

"Anyone using marijuana legally in Washington state should ensure that they are not under the influence when driving across the border into Canada.".