Attorney General’s office will not appeal South Dakota legal marijuana decision

Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg’s office will not participate in an appeal of a judge’s ruling that South Dakota’s legal marijuana amendment violated the state constitution, the Argus Leader has confirmed.

Circuit Court Judge Christina Klinger ruled this week in Hughes County that Amendment A, passed by voters in November, violated the state constitution because it ran afoul of a provision that amendments deal with only one subject. She further argued that Amendment A was not an amendment, but a revision to the constitution and thus violated procedural rules for its implementation.

Amendment A legalized small amounts of recreational marijuana, as well as medical marijuana and hemp. Voters passed the measure by 8 percentage points. Ravnsborg opposed the measure.