What’s next for medical marijuana in Mississippi?

Last Friday, the Mississippi Supreme Court overturned a medical marijuana initiative that voters approved in November.

In their ruling, justices said the process for Initiative 65 was outdated. Therefore, Initiative 65 should have never been on the ballot for voters.

News 25 spoke with Ocean Springs Mayor Shea Dobson, who has been advocating for Initiative 65 since 2018.

Dobson says he is extremely disappointed by the results, saying that the Supreme Court ripped away the people’s voice as 74 percent of them voted in favor of the initiative.

Mayor Dobson feels that the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn the initiative because of the process is unfair when others have been passed the same way.

He argues that Mississippi voter ID and eminent domain initiatives were passed using the same process. “I’m wondering did they have any other motives overturning medical marijuana because we’ve seen the legislature repeatedly try to pass their version that has restrictive patient access. So, I’m just curious as to what exactly is going on.”

As for the future of Initiative 65, Mayor Dobson shares that all we can do is wait to see if the legislature will pass it.