A new lawsuit being backed by the Nevada chapter of the ACLU claims that the state\u2019s drug code unconstitutionally continues to list marijuana as a Schedule I drug, enabling police to continue to arrest people over cannabis despite the fact that it\u2019s been legalized for medical and adult use.<\/p>\n
The suit targets the state Board of Pharmacy, which has scheduling authority over controlled substances. Plaintiffs say that because the board has failed to remove marijuana from Schedule I, people continue to run the risk of being prosecuted for felony crimes such as possession of cannabis with intent to distribute.<\/p>\n
Police have allegedly exploited that legal \u201cloophole\u201d even though the state Constitution recognizes the medical value of marijuana and voters approved adult-use legalization at the ballot in 2016.<\/p>\n
\nPRESS RELEASE: Instead of treating cannabis like alcohol and removing it from the state\u2019s list of controlled substances, Nevada is ignoring its state Constitution and the will of the people. We’re suing. https:\/\/t.co\/Z1oi7fAbOy<\/a><\/p>\n
\u2014 ACLU of Nevada (@ACLUNV) April 18, 2022<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n
\u201cThis is what the police departments are doing. They\u2019re actually charging people with possession of a controlled substance with intent to sell even if it is marijuana,\u201d Sadmira Ramic, an attorney with ACLU of Nevada, told Marijuana Moment in a phone interview on Monday.<\/p>\n
Ramic said she feels that police are \u201caware\u201d that cannabis has been legalized for medical and recreational use, but they\u2019re still \u201cfinding ways to charge people with with marijuana,\u201d disproportionately in minority and low-income communities. She said they\u2019re using \u201cloopholes\u201d related to the board\u2019s current scheduling status to perpetuate \u201cthe same issue that we had when there was a war on marijuana going on\u201d in the state pre-legalization.<\/p>\n
The Cannabis Equity and Inclusion Community (CEIC), which works to help people get prior marijuana convictions cleared and empower disadvantaged communities to participate in the state-legal market, is listed as a plaintiff alongside Antoine Poole, an individual who was found guilty of a Class E felony for cannabis possession in 2017.<\/p>\n
Ramic, who is representing the plaintiffs in this case, said that the Board of Pharmacy is similarly \u201caware\u201d of the marijuana policy changes that have been enacted in the state but have maintained its Schedule I status despite being required to evaluate scheduling decisions annually. She said that she\u2019s not sure at this stage how the board will respond to the suit, but she wouldn\u2019t be surprised if there was \u201cpushback\u201d from the regulatory body.<\/p>\n
Marijuana Moment reached out to the board for comment, but a representative was not immediately available.<\/p>\n
CEIC Founder A\u2019Esha Goins said<\/a> in a press release that the group is \u201cconsistently fighting for policy changes that will ensure freedom for Black and Latinx people that choose cannabis as a treatment,\u201d and it\u2019s \u201cdisheartening that we are four years after legalization and we\u2019re still dealing with policies that can derail people\u2019s lives over cannabis possession.\u201d<\/p>\n
The lawsuit\u2014which was filed in the state\u2019s Eight Judicial District Court in Clark County, Nevada on Friday\u2014states that \u201cCEIC and Mr. Poole are entitled to relief regarding the misclassification of marijuana, cannabis, and cannabis derivatives as Schedule I substances.\u201d<\/p>\n
Failure to properly classify marijuana \u201cwill cause irreparable injury to Petitioners because CEIC must continue to expend its resources on preventing and\/or remedying such efforts, and Mr. Poole continues to suffer the consequences of a cannabis-related convictions,\u201d it says.<\/p>\n
The petitioners are seeking injunctive relief and asking the court to prohibit the board from keeping cannabis in Schedule I.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Nevada\u2019s marijuana market is thriving, with the state reporting late last year that retailers had sold more than $1 billion<\/a> in medical and recreational marijuana over a one-year period.<\/p>\n
Ten percent of tax revenue from recreational cannabis sales will support pubic education funding, as prescribed under\u00a0a bill that Gov. Steve Sisolak (D) previously signed<\/a>.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s little question about where the administration stands on cannabis policy, regardless of the reported recalcitrance of the state Board of Pharmacy.<\/p>\n
The governor has committed to promoting equity and justice in the state\u2019s marijuana law. In 2020, for example, he pardoned more than 15,000 people<\/a> who were convicted for low-level cannabis possession. That action was made possible under\u00a0a resolution the governor introduced<\/a>\u00a0that was unanimously approved by the state\u2019s Board of Pardons Commissioners.<\/p>\n
The governor also signed a bill last year to legalize marijuana consumption lounges<\/a>\u00a0in the state.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, in August 2021, a former Las Vegas police officer who sued after facing termination for testing positive for marijuana scored a significant procedural victory<\/a>, with a district judge denying the department\u2019s request for summary judgement and agreeing that state statute protects employees\u2019 lawful use of cannabis outside of work.<\/p>\n
Read the lawsuit<\/a> against the Nevada Board of Pharmacy on marijuana scheduling below:\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n
\nEven Ben & Jerry\u2019s Is Fed Up With Senate Inaction On Marijuana Legalization<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n
Photo elements courtesy of rawpixel and Philip Steffan.<\/i><\/p>\n
The post Nevada Police Are Exploiting Marijuana Scheduling \u2018Loophole\u2019 To Make Arrests Despite Legalization, ACLU-Backed Lawsuit Claims<\/a> appeared first on Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n
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\nRead More: Nevada Police Are Exploiting Marijuana Scheduling \u2018Loophole\u2019 To Make Arrests Despite Legalization, ACLU-Backed Lawsuit Claims<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A new lawsuit being backed by the Nevada chapter of the ACLU claims that the state\u2019s drug code unconstitutionally continues to list marijuana as a Schedule I drug, enabling police to continue to arrest people over cannabis despite the fact that it\u2019s been legalized for medical and adult use. TheContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":458,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[18,81],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54301"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/458"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=54301"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54301\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":54302,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/54301\/revisions\/54302"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=54301"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=54301"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=54301"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}