John Keuhn, a former Nebraska state senator and former member of the State Board of Health, filed another lawsuit looking to block the medical cannabis legalization initiatives passed last month by voters from taking effect, the Nebraska Examiner reports.
The lawsuit was filed in Lancaster County District Court, where a little over two weeks ago Nebraska District Court Judge Susan Strong dismissed a previous suit filed by Keuhn to challenge the medical cannabis petitions. That effort, which was supported by Secretary of State Bob Evnen and the Nebraska Attorney General’s Office, is under appeal.
The new lawsuit argues that state-level cannabis reforms are “unconstitutional, unlawful, and impossible” under federal law.
“The votes were held on two activist-drafted initiative measures which had, to that point, evaded any judicial review for their compliance with the United States Constitution or Nebraska Constitution. The time for that reckoning is now, before further taxpayer funds are spent on a futile effort.” — Lawsuit excerpt, via the Examiner
Nebraska voters considered two medical cannabis ballot initiatives in November, one to legalize the use and possession of medical cannabis by qualified patients, and another to establish a state-regulated system for the cultivation, processing, and dispensing of medical cannabis. The issue had to be split into two ballot initiatives this year after a 2020 attempt to put medical cannabis on the ballot was struck down by the state’s Supreme Court for violating a single-issue clause in the state constitution.
When the issue finally appeared before voters last month, they overwhelmingly approved both initiatives.
Crista Eggers, campaign manager for the ballot measures, said in the report that Nebraskans made it “overwhelmingly clear that they support safe and regulated medical cannabis access.”
“The assertion that Nebraska’s new medical cannabis laws violate the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution disregards decades of state-led independence and innovation,” she said in a statement. “Under the 10th Amendment of the Constitution, states have the right to address the unique needs of their citizens without undue interference.”
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