A Missouri judge has upheld the state’s medical cannabis rules after rejecting a lawsuit brought by a family arguing that the state’s limit on cultivation licenses violated their “right to farm,” according to a St. Louis Post-Dispatch report.
The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS) issued 60 medical cannabis cultivation licenses in December 2019, and Paul Callicoat and his family sued the department after their application to turn their 70-acre Sarcoxie property into a cultivation site was denied.
The Callicoat’s lawsuit argued that the state violated a right-to-farm amendment in the Missouri Constitution by limiting the number of licenses issued, although Cole County Circuit Judge Patricia Joyce wrote in her ruling that “the department’s regulations fall squarely within its constitutional delegation of authority,” according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
Joyce said the rules limiting the number of medical cannabis cultivators are “appropriate” and “will protect patient safety,” the news outlet reported. She added that the licensing cap is based on population data and can be lifted in the future if needed.
The Callicoat family plans to appeal, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
