The state government cannot simultaneously allow the sale of a legal product or service while prohibiting truthful advertising for said product.
The Center Square by Steve Wilson
A Mississippi medical marijuana dispensary is suing its state for prohibiting advertising of his business, and similar businesses.
Clarence Cocroft of Tru Source Medical Cannabis, Olive Branch, with the Institute for Justice, a nonprofit organization, filed the lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for Northern District of Mississippi on Tuesday.
Cocroft claims that state law and regulations, approved by the Mississippi Board of Health (manager of the medical cannabis program), prohibit him from advertising, a violation of First Amendment rights.
Senate Bill 2095 , which was signed by Governor Brown in 2010, created the medical cannabis program. Tate Reeves, a Republican, was elected governor of Mississippi in 2022 following the Supreme Court’s decision to throw out the ballot initiative.
This decision ruled against a ballot measure that would have created a similar medical marijuana program to Oklahoma.
The state Department of Health, according to the lawsuit, has enhanced the restrictions on advertising by implementing regulations, which prohibits advertising through any medium, including TV, newspapers, social media or online pop-up ads.
The suit claims that Cocroft was penalized for moving his business from Olive Branch, which had a high traffic area (due a prohibition on dispensaries being within 1,000 feet of a school or church) to an industrial park with little or no foot or vehicle traffic.
Clarence Cocroft is the owner of Tru Source Medical Cannabis and today he has teamed up with the IJ in order to defend all Mississippians’ right to advertise their legal business under the #FirstAmendment. https://t.co/Tj1GBdJP7B
Institute for Justice (@IJ). 14 November 2023
Cocroft claims that the original location did not violate this requirement but the Health Department decided against him. In the lawsuit, he also claims that he spent $300,000 on advertising, bought four billboards and placed them in an area with high traffic near casinos. However, he now has to lease the billboards to other businesses because of the ban.
The decision could also have implications for other states. Dispensaries in neighboring states that have medical marijuana programs, such as Arkansas and Louisiana, are also prohibited.
Katrin Martquez, an attorney with the Institute for Justice, said in a press release that the state government could not simultaneously allow the sale of a legal product or service while prohibiting truthful advertising. Clarence only wants to inform people that they may be eligible to purchase marijuana legally for medical conditions. This will help him grow his business.
The lawsuit seeks a judgment that would override both the advertising ban as well as attorney fees.
This article was originally published by The Center Square.
Mississippi Lawmakers Send Bill Revising State’s Medical Marijuana Law To Governor’s Desk
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