Maybe 20 Years From Now, Hailey Idaho Will Know?

April 15, 2009 Hailey Idaho

Hailey voters approved three marijuana and, industrial hemp, initiatives in 2007 and again in 2008. The initiatives were titled the Hailey Medical Marijuana Act, the Hailey Lowest Police Priority Act and the Hailey Industrial Hemp Act.

The city delayed implementing the initiatives into law, and instead Mayor Rick Davis, City Councilman Don Keirn and Hailey Police Chief Jeff Gunter filed a lawsuit last May against the city seeking a judicial review of the legality of the initiatives.


What began as a controversial initiative to legalize marijuana use in the city of Hailey in 2007, may have ended Monday night as a footnote in the city's municipal code. Yet the city will form a committee to address the initiatives' original concerns.

City Attorney Ned Williamson will provide an annotation in the city's law book, explaining what happened for future generations, including a small description of the marijuana initiatives with dates, and the challenges to them, "just so that it's clear in an unbiased and objective way what happened, because 20 years from now people may not know." ...

Arguments were presented to Blaine County 5th District Court Judge Robert J. Elgee, who ruled in March that the initiatives were either contrary to Idaho State law, in conflict with "free speech" guarantees of the U.S. constitution, or illegal because they address administrative functions of local government.

Williamson said he will draft bylaws for the committee, similar to those used by the city's Tree Committee and Arts Committee.

Williamson said, "I'm not sure how long the committee will last, but they will be able to make recommendations to the council and proceed accordingly."

...maybe 20 years from now we wil know?

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