While the legalization of medical marijuana received widespread voter support in South Dakota’s November 3 election, voters were nearly split on a second, potentially unconstitutional referendum that included hemp-related legislation, the regulation of recreational weed and weed taxation.
Col. Rick Miller, superintendent of the South Dakota Highway Patrol, and Pennington County Sheriff Kevin Thom filed a lawsuit in the Hughes County Circuit Court on Friday alleging the state violated its own constitution with the recent Constitutional Amendment A, a sweeping voter referendum that seeks to legalize and tax marijuana while also ensuring that medical marijuana is accessible and recreational weed is regulated.
The referendum also called for hemp regulation laws.
“Our constitutional amendment procedure is very straightforward,” Miller said in a statement, as reported by Dakota News Now. “In this case, the group bringing Amendment A unconstitutionally abused the initiative process. We’re confident that the courts will safeguard the South Dakota Constitution and the rule of law.”
“A proposed amendment may amend one or more articles and related subject matter in other articles as necessary to accomplish the objectives of the amendment; however, no proposed amendment may embrace more than one subject,” Article XXII Sec 1. of the…
