LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — A Clark County District Court judge has ruled that marijuana, cannabis, and cannabis derivatives must be removed from the controlled substances list.
The ruling issued Wednesday also says that the Nevada State Board of Pharmacy is not authorized to regulate cannabis, since the board was ordered to remove the drug from the controlled substances list in September.
Prosecutors claim that the pharmacy board continued to “forcibly” list cannabis as a Schedule 1 drug, alongside other illicit substances.
The board’s attorneys argued that the will of the voters was “upheld” because the ballot measure did not specifically ask to reschedule marijuana.
Previously, the ACLU of Nevada brought forth a lawsuit against the pharmacy board in April, representing the Cannabis, Equity and Inclusion Community on behalf of Las Vegas resident Antoine Poole, who was convicted of felony possession of a controlled substance for Marijuana in 2017.
Nevada voters legalized medical cannabis use in 2000, and eventually legalized the recreational sale and use of cannabis in 2017.
In his ruling, District Court Judge Joe Hardy said the medical value of cannabis is “enshrined in the Nevada Constitution” and the board “exceeded its authority when it placed or failed to remove marijuana, cannabis, and cannabis derivatives [from] its list.”
Hardy also said the only regulatory body authorized to govern and regulate the legal marijuana industry is the Cannabis Compliance Board.
