Neighboring states try to kill Colorado’s pot law

After the state of Colorado made a historic, well-publicized decision to legalize nearly all forms of recreational marijuana use in 2014, it appears that not all are feeling peaceful about the decision. Despite epic tax revenues—and stoked Coloradans—several adjacent states are taking to federal court in an effort to stop the flow of marijuana across state lines.

Oklahoma and Nebraska harsh the buzz

In December 2014, the states of Oklahoma and Nebraska lodged an 84-page complaint against the state of Colorado, asserting that Colorado’s legalization of marijuana created a “dangerous gap in the federal drug control system.” Further, the states claimed that the legalization of marijuana in Colorado has resulted in the inevitable overflow of the product into their jurisdictions, causing unneeded stress on the criminal justice systems and state treasuries.

From there, Oklahoma and Nebraska launched into a series of arguments to support the notion that Colorado cannot constitutionally undermine the current federal drug policies—which outlaw marijuana—by enacting its own conflicting pro-marijuana laws. More specifically, their complaint states that “Colorado’s pursuit of a policy to promote widespread possession and use and the commercial cultivation, distribution, marketing, and sales of marijuana [ignores] every objective embodied in the federal drug control and regulation system.”

The complaint adamantly casts doubt on the constitutionality of Colorado’s drug policies, claiming they violate the terms of several international drug trafficking treaties, and undermine Congress’s intent to create a comprehensive and consistent response to illegal drug use and sales in the United States. It also accuses the state of not implementing any safeguards in its marijuana policies to help reduce or eliminate interstate trafficking, and failing to require purchasers to undergo criminal background checks.

States claim harm

After airing that laundry list of grievances, the states then make several assertions as to how they have experienced unforeseen, unwanted harms as a result of the booming nearby pot business.

First, the plaintiffs allege that their law enforcement agencies make daily traffic stops and arrests of citizens caught with marijuana purchased from Colorado. As a result, both Oklahoma and Nebraska say that their judicial and law enforcement systems are being unfairly stripped of resources while combatting the influx of Colorado-derived marijuana purchases. The plaintiffs further point to the strong likelihood that the issue will only get worse as citizens continue to travel to these states to make lawful purchases—only to immediately break the law when crossing the border.

At the conclusion of the complaint, Nebraska and Oklahoma request the Supreme Court to declare Amendment 64 unconstitutional, issue an injunction against Colorado in its legalization of marijuana, and require the state of Colorado to foot the bill for the attorneys’ fees incurred as a result of the lawsuit.

U.S. government weighs in

Despite the plaintiffs’ lofty arguments in support of Congress and federal drug policies, the Department of Justice (DOJ) issued its own brief in opposition to those arguments, raised in its own favor. The DOJ asserted that any cross-border instances of crime are the result of the individual whims of the person engaging in the conduct, and are not directly caused by Colorado’s drug policies.

Further, the DOJ reminded the Court that Colorado’s drug policies do not “direct or authorize anyone to carry marijuana across the state border.” Moreover, Colorado has legalized marijuana use and sale in increments of one ounce only, meaning the regulations are unlikely to promote or exacerbate large-scale trafficking. Colorado and several pro-marijuana organizations have voiced similar opposition to Nebraska and Oklahoma’s arguments, essentially urging the Supreme Court to just let it be.

The case remains in limbo as the Supreme Court decides whether to accept or deny the plaintiffs’ complaint. If the Supreme Court opts to not take the case, Oklahoma and Nebraska may be able to raise their challenges in a lower-level trial court or administrative outlet.

Until then, Coloradans are free to possess up to an ounce of recreational marijuana—but they’d be advised to confine their toking to the Centennial State.