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Legalizing Marijuana
Luisa Muniz
Mon. March 31, 2014 . . . 9AM News
Running Time: 1:41
Karen R. (anchor): It’s been four months since the first marijuana stores officially opened in
Colorado, however many marijuana businesses’ owners are facing the first obstacles in this
prolific industry. Here is Luisa Muniz with the details.
TIME: 00:14
SOT: ambient sound
Muniz: Thank you, Karen.
Fourteen-million worth of recreational marijuana is the reported amount sold only in January,
however, prospective businesses in Colorado and Washington are worried because of the
continued federal prohibition of marijuana, which prevents banks from offering any legal
financial services in benefit of their businesses which, according to Senator Bob Hasegawa (Hah-
sah-gah-wah) from Washington, are becoming an all-cash industry:
TIME: 00:24
SOT FULL: Hasegawa
[From The Oregonian]
“A billion-dollar marketplace out there, and it all has to deal in cash because it’s totally un-
bankable. That’s just a magnet for armed robbery, murder and organized crime.”
TIME: 00:09
Muniz: Michael Elliott, executive director for the Marijuana Industry Group, agrees with Senator
Hasegawa (Hah-sah-gah-wah), saying that, even though banks want to get involved, no business

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can deposit more than ten-thousand-dollars at a time without their bank filing a suspicious
activity report, and such reports would force banks to decline marijuana businesses. [from NBC]
In the same manner John Urquhart (Uh-r-k-ah-r-t), Sheriff of King County in Washington, thinks
that federal support will be necessary in order for this to become a safe industry:
TIME: 00:29
SOT Full: Urquhart
[From the Oregonian]
“Unless we have the cooperation of the banking industry, which requires cooperation of the
federal government, we’ll be right back where we started.”
TIME: 00:08
Muniz: So far, Colorado and Washington are the only states that have legalized marijuana for
recreational purposes, however, other states such as New Jersey and Alaska are considering
doing the same.
I’m Luisa Muniz for UTEP Newscast. Back to you, Karen.
SOT: ambient sound
TIME: 00:17