DALY CITY, CA – APRIL 18: Leaves of a mature marijuana plant are seenin a display at The International Cannabis and Hemp Expo April 18, 2010 at the Cow Palace in Daly City, California. The two day Cannabis and Hemp Expo features speakers, retailers selling medical marijuana smoking paraphernalia and a special tent available for medical marijuana card holders to smoke their medicine. Voters in California will consider a measure on the November general election ballot that could make the State the first in the nation to legalize the growing of a limited amount of marijuana for private use. (Photo by Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)(Photo: Justin Sullivan Getty Images)



BOULDER, Colo. (AP) – University of Colorado officials are defending their plan to close the Boulder campus on April 20 for the third straight year and to increase police presence to curtail an annual marijuana celebration that has drawn thousands of participants in years past.


CU spokesman Ryan Huff tells The Daily Camera he appreciates students’ concerns about inconvenience and not feeling welcome on their own campus, but “there’s no real way to close a campus without that law enforcement presence.”


Campus officials have been trying to extinguish the smokeout – which at its height drew about 10,000 tokers – by closing the campus to outsiders, spreading fishy smelling fertilizer on the quad and enforcing marijuana laws.


From noon to 6 p.m. on April 20, CU faculty, students and staff will be required to show identification to enter campus.


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