Lawsuit to block medical marijuana initiative removes LDS references

August 26, 2018 Utah Channel 3

ST. GEORGE — References to medical marijuana being offensive to members of the The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints were recently dropped from a lawsuit seeking to block Proposition 2 from being on the November ballot.

Walter Plumb III, an attorney and staunch opponent of the medical marijuana ballot initiative, removed the language related to the LDS church soon after the church stated its own opposition to Proposition 2 during a press conference last week.

Church representatives said the church wasn’t against medical marijuana as long as it was prescribed by a physician and issued through a pharmacy. Rather, the church’s opposition is toward Proposition 2, which the church and others claim is bad legislation.

The lawsuit’s original language argued Proposition 2 would be a threat to the religious freedom of Mormons and other faith groups.

Proposition 2, the lawsuit claimed, would take away the right of church members “not to consort with, or be around, or do business with people engaging in activities which their religion finds morally repugnant, and to refuse to lease their property to people engaging in activities they oppose.”

With the references to LDS church member beliefs removed, the lawsuit now primarily argues that Proposition 2 in unconstitutional based on the adverse impacts it would have on property rights.

Proposition 2, also called the Utah Medical Cannabis Act, states that no property owner can refuse to lease or otherwise penalize an individual solely based on their being a medical cannabis card holder. The lawsuit argues that is a violation of the property owner’s rights.

The lawsuit also argues Proposition 2 violates free speech by blocking property owners from banning cannabis possession and use on their property.

It also argues that Proposition 2 would make medical cannabis users a protected class while taking rights away from property owners.

The amended lawsuit also drops Drug Safe Utah as a plaintiff and replaces it with the group “Truth about Proposition 2.”

“We’re pleased to see Walter Plumb and Prop 2 opponents dropped the claim that medical cannabis users are ‘repugnant,’” The Utah Patients Coalition, the group behind Proposition 2, posted on Twitter Saturday.

“Now we await a public apology for ever having claimed it. Without that, we assume it’s still a deeply held belief of theirs, sadly.”

We’re pleased to see Walter Plumb and Prop 2 opponents dropped the claim that medical cannabis users are “repugnant.”

Now we await a public apology for ever having claimed it. Without that, we assume it’s still a deeply held belief of theirs, sadly. #utpol #patientsnotcriminals

— Utah Patients (@utahpatients) August 26, 2018

Email: mkessler@stgnews.com

Twitter: @MoriKessler