KKTV
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KKTV) – A district court judge has granted an emergency stay request by the City of Colorado Springs — allowing them to proceed with placing a repeal of recreational marijuana on the April 1 ballot.
It’s the latest development in an ongoing legal battle following voter approval of Ballot Question 300 in November. That measure allowed medical dispensaries to apply to also sell recreational marijuana starting in April.
Last month, city council voted 7-2 to ask voters to repeal Question 300, over concerns that voters may have been confused by it and one other question that also asked voters to ban recreational marijuana within city limits.
A lawsuit was filed by Executive Director of El Paso County Progressive Veterans Adam Gillard and owner of medical marijuana shop The Epic Remedy Renze Waddington.
They said the amendment of the Colorado Constitution that legalized recreational marijuana allows local governments to prohibit sales within its borders, but any ballot measure that does so must “appear on a general election ballot during an even-numbered year.” They allege the April 1, 2025, municipal election does not fit that definition.
The lawsuit also claims the council’s measure repealing Question 300 violates a city statute that says a ballot title set by the council “shall not tend to confuse, mislead or deceive the electorate.”
On Monday, a judge previously ruled that the Colorado Springs City Council’s attempt to place a repeal of Question 300 on the city election ballot was unconstitutional.
The City filed an appeal against Monday’s ruling, and on Wednesday, the same judge from Monday’s ruling delayed her own decision, at the City’s request.
Wednesday’s ruling supersedes Monday’s ruling, but the Colorado Supreme Court still needs to weigh in.
In the meantime, the judge also ruled that the question’s wording on the April 1 ballot needs to reflect that of the plaintiffs’.
“As a result of receiving the judge’s order on the stay past the City’s printing deadline and the uncertainty of the form of the ballot language amid pending litigation, the City will not be able to mail overseas U.S. citizens and active-duty military ballots on Friday (Feb. 14),” a spokesperson for the City of Colorado Springs said. “The City does not want to treat its 4,848 overseas active-duty military and overseas citizens differently than its domestic electorate. It is important for them to have the same clarity and content on their ballot. The City is working as quickly as possible within the court system to resolve this issue.”
