Pot Matters: Supreme Court Declines to Review Colorado’s Legalization of Marijuana

[unhappycamper]

http://hightimes.com/read/pot-matters-supreme-court-declines-review-colorado%E2%80%99s-legalization-marijuana



Pot Matters: Supreme Court Declines to Review Colorado’s Legalization of Marijuana
By Jon Gettman · Fri Mar 25, 2016

Colorado legalized marijuana, and neighboring states Nebraska and Oklahoma filed a motion with the Supreme Court to complain that this was a violation of federal law. On Monday, the Supreme Court, which has original jurisdiction over disputes between states, declined to accept the case without comment.

Well, almost without comment.

Justice Thomas had some comments, which he expressed in a dissent to the court’s decision not to accept the case of Nebraska and Oklahoma v. Colorado. The court’s refusal applies to a legal matter “On Motion For Leave to File a Bill of Complaint." Justice Thomas was joined by Justice Alito in his dissent but clearly no one else on the court.

Justice Thomas acknowledged that the court has discretion to hear or not to hear cases for which it has original jurisdiction (cases that the Constitution requires go directly to the Supreme Court for adjudication) but conceded that “whatever the merit of the plaintiff States’ claims, we should let this complaint proceed further rather than denying leave without so much as a word of explanation.”

[ShrimpPoboy]

1. This should be litigated.

It's a serious question about the relationship between the states that the Supremes ought to answer eventually. I don't pretend to know the right procedural vehicle for that though. Maybe this just wasn't it.