South Dakota’s Supreme knocks down recreational cannabis polls and overturns the will of the people

By Nina Zdinjak

Finally, the decision is made on the South Dakota voter-approved initiative to legalize recreational cannabis. Unfortunately, the state Supreme Court decided to kill him.

As one of five states to vote on a cannabis initiative in the November 2020 election, South Dakota managed to garner around 54% support for legalization, but the move was declared unconstitutional.

Photo by Lisa Reichenstein from Pexels

Why?

According to the judgment of District Judge Christina Klinger in February, the initiative violates the requirement that constitutional amendments can only deal with one topic. South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem initially challenged the change and ordered a lawsuit in January to overturn part of the adult election results.

“Amendment A is a revision as it has far-reaching implications for the fundamental nature of the system of government in South Dakota,” wrote Klinger, who was appointed District Judge by Noem in 2019, in her ruling.

“Today’s decision protects and protects our constitution,” Noem said in a statement at the time. “I am confident that if the South Dakota Supreme Court is asked to intervene, it will come to the same conclusion.”

On Wednesday, however, a majority in the Supreme Court supported Klinger’s ruling, confirming the amendments “violate the one-topic requirement in the South Dakota Constitution,” NORML reported.

Photo by MmeEmil / Getty Images

“Opponents of legalization cannot be successful in public opinion or at the ballot box,” said NORML Deputy Director Paul Armentano. “Therefore, they are now asking the courts to repeal the will of the people. Whether or not to support marijuana legalization, Americans should be deeply concerned about this trend and the outcome of this case. “

RELATED: South Dakota’s Amendment to Legalize Recreational Grass Declared Unconstitutional

This is the second time this year a court has rejected a voter-approved initiative to legalize marijuana use. Mississippi Supreme Court justices decided to scrap Initiative 65, which would regulate medical cannabis in the state, despite 73% of Mississippi voters backing the measure on election day.

Last November, South Dakota voters also backed a separate vote that would regulate access to medical marijuana by qualified patients, which luckily was not challenged.

RELATED: Why Voting for Cannabis Isn’t Always the Same as Cannabis Legislation

Supporters of the cannabis legalization initiative in South Dakota are already planning to introduce a new measure in 2022.

This article originally appeared on Benzinga and was republished with permission.