A coalition of Massachusetts-based cannabis firms has instigated a federal lawsuit in a bid to challenge the prohibition on marijuana. The action was initiated last week in a Massachusetts district court, with US Attorney General Merrick Garland being the only named defendant in the proceedings. The suit contends that this ban, as it applies to individual states, encroaches upon rights protected by the United States constitution.
More specifically, they assert that the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), the law that establishes the federal ban on the cultivation, manufacture, sale, and possession of marijuana, presents an unconstitutional invasion into their businesses. They further argue that the CSA violates their Fifth Amendment rights by posing an ‘unwarranted and unlawful federal government intrusion’, and is thereby depriving them of liberty without due process.
In asserting such claims, the companies have requested a declaratory judgment from the court—an official statement to rule the CSA unconstitutional. They claim that the CSA disrupts state marijuana programs and have highlighted the 2012 Massachusetts Medical Marijuana Initiative and 2016 Massachusetts Marijuana Legalization Initiative as examples.
They argue that these state initiatives that legalized both medical and recreational marijuana were adopted to protect consumers and also ensure that the regulated marijuana sold within the state is separate from illicit, interstate marijuana.
The lawsuit further alleges that the CSA damages businesses of all sizes and presents a public safety risk. Because of the federal law, they state, cannabis businesses are barred from participating in federal programs. They have raised issues with hiring, advertising, payroll, loans, and insurance due to federal affiliations, noting that state-regulated cannabis businesses are denied the use of credit card processors since financial institutions are federally regulated. Subsequently, because these companies must rely largely on cash transactions, the lawsuit argues, dispensaries have become targets of criminal activity such as robberies.
Currently, 38 states have legalized medical marijuana across the nation, and 23 have legalized marijuana for recreational use. After the announcement of the groundbreaking lawsuit, Darren Weiss, the president of Verano, one of the plaintiff companies in the action, stated his support for the legal challenge promoting equal treatment under the law.