Nebraska judge rules medical marijuana ballot initiatives are valid

A ruling during the week of Nov. 24 brings Nebraska one step closer to a growing list of states where medical marijuana is legal. Although voters across the state approved ballot initiatives earlier this month by more than a two-thirds majority, the resolution was challenged and sent to the courtroom.

The Nebraskans for Marijuana campaign has been at the center of a lawsuit brought by Nebraska Secretary of State Bob Evnen, the Attorney General’s Office and former State Sen. John Kuehn.

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According to court documents, they allege there were issues with how thousands of signatures were collected.

Per Nebraska’s Constitution, ballot sponsors needed 86,499 signatures for both initiatives, which were certified ahead of Election Day by the Secretary of State’s Office.

One initiative focuses on how cannabis is regulated and the other on legalizing its use. Both passed with 67% and 71% of voter approval, respectively, when Nebraskans cast their ballots on Nov. 5.

One of the paid circulators for the campaign was criminally charged for his role in falsifying 164 signatures. That raised questions about the other collected signatures and whether they were properly notarized.

Michael Egbert admitted to forging signatures and illegally adding names to both petitions using a phonebook.

Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana pushed back and said even if some signatures were faulty, the group still has close to 90,000 valid signatures on both petitions.

District Judge Susan Strong agreed with the group and released a 57-page order stating that in order to show fraud, the plaintiffs would have to prove more than 3,000 signatures on each petition were invalid.

However, according to the order, the “presumption of validity” was lost because the plaintiffs could only show less than a thousand signatures were invalid.

Strong wrote her decision wasn’t the result of the exclusion or inclusion of petitions and both Evnen and Kuehn would still fall short of the challenged signatures.

Judge Strong further said she could not find sufficient evidence of widespread wrongdoing through the campaign and the plaintiffs’ arguments were not made during court proceedings.

Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana had previously spent three years working to get these measures on the ballot but weren’t able to meet the signature requirements.

In 2020, the campaign came close before facing another legal issue when the Nebraska Supreme Court ruled the measure was unconstitutional because it violated the “single subject rule.”

Crista Eggers, the statewide campaign manager for Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana, helped push for the legalization of cannabis to help her son, who suffers from severe seizures and epilepsy.

“Many years of hard work have gone into this effort, from volunteers, patients and families across the state.”

Crista Eggers, Nebraskans for Medical Marijuana.

In response to the recent decision, she said she hopes the election results will be upheld and that she’s happy with Strong’s ruling. She also looks forward to the safe, regulated use of medical marijuana.

The Attorney General’s Office could file an appeal on the judge’s ruling but the general election results are set to be certified on Dec. 2.

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A spokesperson for the AG’s office said they are reviewing the decision and are determining what the next steps are.

Voters in Florida, South Dakota and North Dakota pushed back on legalizing recreational cannabis, denying ballot measures on Election Day.

In 2023, Ohio joined 24 other states – including California, Colorado, Connecticut, Illinois, New York, Oregon, Virginia, Alaska and Arizona – that legalized recreational marijuana use for adults.

The growing support is also prompting the federal government to redefine marijuana. The Drug Enforcement Administration has started the process of reclassifying the drug as less dangerous.