Nevada Appeals Court Ruling Which Says Cannabis’ Schedule 1 Classification is Unconstitutional

About a month ago, a Nevada state court ruled that it is unconstitutional to keep cannabis listed as a Schedule 1 drug, and ordered the Nevada state pharmacy board to remove it from the state’s Schedule 1 classification list.

Now, the Nevada Board of Pharmacy is seeking to appeal that ruling, and their also asking to stay that order as the appeal process proceeds.

The original lawsuit had been filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada, on behalf of a man named Antoine Poole, who was found guilty of a Class E felony for cannabis possession a year after cannabis was legalized in the state. Also included in the plaintiffs are the Cannabis Equity and Inclusion Community, who are a group that, among other things, work to help people get prior cannabis convictions cleared.

Their lawsuit said that because the Nevada state Board of Pharmacy have kept cannabis on their list of Schedule 1 drugs, that this has caused a loophole where people are still being prosecuted for felonys like possession of cannabis with intent to sell, despite the fact that the state legalized cannabis posession and use. Co-plaintiff Antoine Poole’s past conviction had prevented him from “doing basic things,” such as getting the license he wanted to become a barber.

The plaintiff lawsuit alleged that it is unconstitutional for the Nevada Board of Pharmacy to keep cannabis listed as a Schedule 1 drug while also being state legalized for having medicinal value, and recreational use.

District Judge Joe Hardy Jr. agreed with the plaintiff’s argument and subsequently ordered the Nevada state Board of Pharmacy to remove cannabis from their list of Schedule 1 drugs in the state. Judge Hardy said at his ruling, “The constitutional right to use marijuana upon the advice of a physician does establish that marijuana has an accepted medical use and treatment in the United States.”

If this ruling holds and the state Board of Pharmacy does deschedule cannabis in their state, this could be a significant step towards pushing the federal government to also deschedule cannabis on the federal level, or at least attempt to do so through the US Supreme Court in a similar manner to this case in Nevada.

​Regarding this latest appeal of that decision, ACLU Nevada’s Legal Director Chris Peterson said in a press release, “The District Court’s ruling was thoughtful and strong, and we have no intention of backing down until we have fixed this inconsistency to prevent further injustice.”

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