Should Denver Vote to Decriminalize Psychedelic Mushrooms?

In 2012, Colorado was one of the first states that made recreational marijuana legal. Now it looks as if Colorado is making headlines in the United States' drug policy. Next week, on May 7, the City of Denver is going to vote on the Psilocybin Mushroom Initiative (Initiated Ordinance 301). Essentially, the ballot initiative is to determine whether psilocybin mushrooms, more colloquially known as psychedelic mushrooms, should be decriminalized to the lowest law enforcement priority possible. This is in contrast to current law that states that possession of psilocybin is considered a felony.

Much like with marijuana use, the word "psychedelic" invokes images of the hippy counterculture of the 1960s and the "Summer of Love." As such, there are those who are instinctively against the use of psychedelic mushrooms. Conversely, there are those who are instinctively for all drug legalization while simultaneously being against the War on Drugs. With regards to marijuana use, time, research, and evidence have proven the naysayers wrong. Looking at Colorado's marijuana laws at five years, it looks like marijuana legalization has done more good than harm. Although marijuana legalization seems to be beneficial in net, we should not automatically assume the same outcome would happen with psilocybin mushrooms. After all, different drugs have different effects and outcomes, which is in part why the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) schedules drugs. Psilocybin mushrooms are currently ranked by the DEA as a Schedule I drug, a scheduling that is inappropriately applied to marijuana. The question to answer here is whether psilocybin mushrooms get a similarly unjustifiable reputation like marijuana or not.

Psilocybin mushrooms, also known as psychedelic mushrooms, magic mushrooms, or shrooms, are fungi that produce auditory and visual hallucinations followed by perceived changes in time and space. Emotionally speaking, the experience varies, from depression to hilarity to relaxation. Environment helps set the tone for the trip. The feeling of psilocybin mushrooms is subjective, and is variable from user to user. The underlying question here is the level of harm that psilocybin mushrooms cause, both to the user and others.

Let's start by saying that there are real risks, much like with any other substance. There is a real chance of the hallucination becoming so real that it could cause the user to do something life-threatening. There is also the possibility of causing real psychological damage, especially if one is prone to psychotic conditions. It is why it is highly recommended that psilocybin mushrooms are taken in a safe, supervised setting.

That being said, research has found psilocybin mushrooms to reduce anxiety and depression, especially in cancer patients (Griffiths et al., 2016; Cahart-Harris et al., 2016; Grob et al., 2012).  There have been other studies showing psilocybin mushroom use is safer than other substances, including such licit substances as alcohol and tobacco (e.g., Morgan et al., 2013; Nutt, 2010). The 2017 Global Drug Survey states that magic mushrooms are the safest in terms of requiring the lowest rate of emergency medical treatment. A series of studies in the December 2016 issue of The Journal of Psychopharmacology show just how much potential there is to its benefits. Even more indicting and damning is that last year, researchers at Johns Hopkins found such minimal harm that they went as far as saying that psilocybin mushrooms should be at a much less stringent categorization of Schedule IV (Johnson et al., 2018), a classification that applies to prescription sleeping pills and other substances for low abuse potential.

While psychedelic mushrooms are in the initial research stages, they are promising enough where the FDA decided in 2018 to expedite its development and review of a psilocybin-based drug. What research is showing is that psilocybin is a relatively non-addictive and is not particularly toxic. It is also showing an ability to treat anxiety, depression, and other ailments (e.g., tobacco addiction). The research does not provide justification for criminal proceedings for possession or usage, certainly at the level of felony. Think of how time and money could be spent better than chasing psilocybin mushroom users. Given where the research is taking us, the citizens of Denver should vote "Yes" on the Psilocybin Mushroom Initiative come May 7th.