HEALTH NEWS FEBRUARY 2, 2019 / 5:51 PM / UPDATED AN HOUR AGO

Denver to vote on whether to decriminalize 'magic mushrooms'

Keith Coffman
3 MIN READ

DENVER (Reuters) - Denver voters will decide in May whether to decriminalize possession of small amounts of the hallucinogenic drug psilocybin, which would make it the first U.S. city to halt prosecution of people caught with psychedelic mushrooms.

The citizen-driven proposal, which election officials said this week reached the required number of signatures to be on the city’s municipal ballot, would not legalize so-called “magic mushrooms,” but rather make them a low priority for law enforcement, according to its language.

Decriminalize Denver, the group behind the ballot question, said the drug has medical benefits that could reduce psychological stress and opioid dependence.

“Nationally, Denver and the state of Colorado have represented the first movers in a revised understanding of the potential benefits of naturally-occurring psychoactive medicines,” the group said on its website.

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