JEFFERSON CITY — A campaign to legalize marijuana for recreational use in Missouri cemented its place on the Nov. 8 ballot on Tuesday when the state Supreme Court decided not to consider a challenge to the initiative petition.
Ashcroft placed the initiative petition on the ballot after initial counts from local officials showed canvassers had failed to collect enough signatures to qualify.
Attorneys for Joy Sweeney, a Jefferson City resident who sued the state to remove Amendment 3 from the ballot, argued Ashcroft’s unusual review of signatures following contact with the Legal Missouri 2022 campaign fell outside the bounds of state law.
But Cole County Circuit Judge Cotton Walker dismissed the lawsuit after attorneys for the state and Legal Missouri challenged Sweeney’s residency and standing to sue.
Walker also agreed that Ashcroft was within his authority when he certified the petition after reviewing the petitions for valid signatures of registered voters.
On Monday, the Missouri Court of Appeals at Kansas City disagreed with Walker’s decision on Sweeney’s standing. But the court affirmed the lower court’s determination that Ashcroft acted legally when he moved to certify the petition for the ballot.
On Tuesday, the Missouri Supreme Court said it wouldn’t take up the case, ensuring the question will appear before voters on Nov. 8.
“We are now one step away from passing Amendment 3, which will bring millions in new revenue to Missouri, while allowing law enforcement to concentrate on fighting violent and serious crime,†John Payne, the Legal Missouri 2022 campaign manager, said in a statement.
Luke Niforatos, CEO of the Colorado-based Protect Our Kids PAC, an anti-drug organization that supported the lawsuit, said the group was disappointed in the decision Tuesday.
But he added that members of his organization would soon partner with Missouri allies to launch a campaign in opposition to Amendment 3.
