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A top medical marijuana opponent in Nebraska has initiated a new legal challenge aiming to nullify two recent ballot initiatives to legalize and regulate marijuana in the state.
John Kuehn, a former state senator from Heartwell and a past State Board of Health member, filed a second lawsuit this year targeting the Nebraskans for Medical Cannabis campaign and Bob Evnen, the Secretary of State. The recent case comes after Kuehn lost a related lawsuit in late November, a decision he is currently appealing.
The new lawsuit also involves Governor Jim Pillen and argues that state cannabis legislation is unconstitutional and unenforceable. It further challenges the proposal to create a new agency to oversee cannabis regulation, claiming this approach is prohibited under the law.
According to the lawsuit, the measures created by activists have not undergone proper judicial scrutiny to ensure compliance with the Nebraska and U.S. Constitutions. Kuehn argues that action must be taken now to avoid wasting taxpayer money on what he describes as a doomed effort.
Nebraska law requires the governor to formally declare which ballot measures succeeded in the November 5 election. This includes Initiative Measures 438 and 437, which relate to medical cannabis. Kuehn’s lawsuit seeks to stop the governor from performing this duty.
Crista Eggers, a campaign manager and one of the ballot measures’ sponsors, noted the broad public support for regulated access to medical marijuana, citing overwhelming approval during last month’s vote. She pointed out that 48 states already permit some form of marijuana use, highlighting the state’s right to address its citizens’ needs. Eggers reiterated the campaign’s commitment to defending the state’s medical marijuana legislation to ensure access for patients.
Kuehn’s legal challenge, if successful, could set a precedent for questioning cannabis measures in other states. While the federal government is considering reclassifying cannabis to a less severe category, Kuehn has previously argued that these measures violate federal law.
His initial lawsuit, filed in September, claimed that the initiatives lacked sufficient valid signatures and included concerns of petition fraud. That case, however, was dismissed. Despite the setback, Kuehn has continued his efforts, filing the current lawsuit shortly after the Nebraska Canvassing Board certified the election results.
As it stands, Measures 437 and 438 would respectively allow up to five ounces of medical marijuana with a doctor’s recommendation and establish a regulatory commission by October 2025. Kuehn argues that the governor cannot allocate taxpayer resources to support what he views as federally illegal activity. The case has now moved to Judge Susan Strong, who will hear an initial request to block Governor Pillen from finalizing the measures.
Marijuana companies, such as Cresco Labs Inc. (CSE: CL) (OTCQX: CRLBF) from various jurisdictions will be watching how this latest legal challenge to the medical cannabis measures in Nebraska pans out.
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