Missouri appeals judge throws out challenge to marijuana license limits

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A Missouri appeals judge affirmed a lower court decision that rejected a challenge to the state’s medical marijuana licensing caps.

The Missouri Western District Court of Appeals upheld the December 2020 decision by then Cole County Circuit Judge Pat Joyce, according to the News Tribune in Jefferson City.

Paul Callicoat and his family had sued the state after being denied a license to turn their 70-acre farm into a medical marijuana cultivation facility.

Their main argument was that the state’s cap of 60 cultivation licenses violated their right to farm.

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Joyce ruled that the state’s marijuana regulations were “properly promulgated” and that the “right to farm does not apply to the cultivation of marijuana.”

Missouri, which launched MMJ sales in October 2020, also was riddled with complaints about its applicant scoring system.