Medical Marijuana Question Rejected by High Court

  • The Nebraska Supreme Court ruled that a medical marijuana legalization initiative cannot appear on the state’s ballot after Lancaster County Sheriff Terry Wagner filed a challenge last month.

  • The court agreed that the proposal violates the state’s single-subject rule for ballot initiatives and removed the ballot proposal.

A circulator in Wilber, Saline County, Nebraska, outside the county courthouse. Photo by Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana

A circulator in Wilber, Saline County, Nebraska, outside the county courthouse. Photo by Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana

Sens. Adam Morfeld and Anna Wishart argued in favor of the petition before the Nebraska Supreme Court. Photo by Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana

Sens. Adam Morfeld and Anna Wishart argued in favor of the petition before the Nebraska Supreme Court. Photo by Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana

The Secretary of State approved the signatures from the petition to put medical marijuana before Nebraska voters. But the Supreme Court ruled against it on Thursday, September 10, 2020.

Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana, the group that petitioned to place the measure on the ballot, said it was “absolutely devastated” that voters will not have a chance at the decision, on Tuesday, November 3, 2020, election day.

“Nothing changes the fact that an overwhelming majority of Nebraskans stand with the patients and families who deserve compassion and safe access to medical cannabis,” the campaign said in a Facebook post. “We will be regrouping and updating you all soon with plans for our next steps.”

The court released its final opinion determining that the proposal does violate the single-subject rule and cannot proceed to the ballot.

“As proposed, the [Nebraska Medical Cannabis Constitutional Amendment] contains more than one subject—by our count, it contains at least eight subjects,” the court concluded. “In addition to enshrining in our constitution a right of certain persons to produce and medicinally use cannabis under subsections (1) and (2), in subsections (3) and (4), the NMCCA would enshrine a right and immunity for entities to grow and sell cannabis; and in subsections (6), (7), and (8), it would regulate the role of cannabis in at least six areas of public life. These secondary purposes are not naturally and necessarily connected to the NMCCA’s primary purpose. As such, they constitute logrolling.”

The justices wrote in a majority opinion that if voters are “to intelligently adopt a State policy with regard to medicinal cannabis use, they must first be allowed to decide that issue alone, unencumbered by other subjects.” Five justices voted to remove the medical marijuana question. Two justices voted to keep it on the ballot. The Supreme Court did not suggest a question that would have been legal in this instance and subject.

DIGEST

Here are a few links regarding the cannabis ruling.


Nebraska GovernmentGuest Usermedical marijuana