WASHINGTON (CBS) — The Supreme Court has rejected an effort by Nebraska and Oklahoma to have Colorado’s pot legalization declared unconstitutional.
The justices are not commenting Monday in dismissing the lawsuit the states filed directly at the Supreme Court against their neighbor.
They argued that Colorado’s law allowing recreational marijuana use by adults runs afoul of federal anti-drug laws. The states also said that legalized pot in Colorado is spilling across the borders into Nebraska and Oklahoma, complicating their anti-drug efforts and draining state resources.
In December, the Obama administration sided with Colorado, despite the administration’s opposition to making marijuana use legal.
Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito would have heard the states’ lawsuit.
The Colorado Attorney General Cynthia Coffman who represented the state in this lawsuit said she continues to be concerned about the risks posed by legalized marijuana, but believes that “this lawsuit is without legal basis and is not the way to fix America’s broken drug policy.”
