Mandy Denson co-owns Compassionate Distributors dispensary in Ruidoso. She says when medicinal marijuana was approved in New Mexico and dispensaries started setting up shop they were mainly in the northern part of the state. “Our portion of the state in southeastern New Mexico is very poor. I grew up in Roswell so I am familiar with the general demographics”, she says. Denson realized that if there was going to be any reliable access to cannabis medicine in southeastern New Mexico she was going to have grow it herself. But as a mother and working professional she couldn’t just blatantly risk breaking federal law to do so. At least not until 2009 when there was a change in federal enforcement priorities. “The attorney general at that time said that federal resources shall not be used to police compliance with state programs and so I at that point felt that it was safe “ she says.
