By RYAN DAVIDSON
This is an open letter to the residents of Sun Valley, Ketchum and Hailey.
Many of you probably remember that two years ago my fledgling political organization attempted to circulate ballot initiatives in your cities that sought to tax and regulate marijuana in a fashion similar to that of alcohol and tobacco. I'm a passionate believer in limited government and personal rights, and it is my feeling that the government has no business telling free people what they can and cannot put in their bodies. I believe that the war on drugs has been an expensive failure.
The war on marijuana makes the least sense of all, since the substance is demonstrably less harmful than alcohol and has legitimate medicinal functions. When we polled likely voters in the area, we found that a high percentage would vote in favor of an initiative designed to reform marijuana laws. Despite this, the city clerks of all three cities (on the instruction of the city attorneys, and backed up by the city councils) refused to process our preliminary paperwork, thereby preventing us from even being able to collect signatures for our proposals. This put me in a position where I had no choice but to file a lawsuit. I had steadfastly maintained from day one that the cities' actions were without any basis in law. Now, after two years of hard-fought litigation, the state Supreme Court has unanimously agreed with me.
For a time, the city attorneys had me doubting my ability to read and comprehend basic English. In my opinion, Sun Valley City Code § 1-7-2-3 C was clear and unambiguous. See what you think: "Before or at the time of beginning to circulate any petition for initiative or referendum, the person ... shall send or deliver to the City Clerk a copy of such petition duly signed by at least twenty (20) electors eligible to sign such petition. The Clerk shall immediately examine the petition and specify the form and kind and size of paper on which the petition shall be printed and circulated for further signatures."
Do you see anything in this ordinance that says that the clerk can refuse to process the petition because he or she believes it to be unconstitutional? Despite this clear wording, the Sun Valley city attorney apparently instructed the clerk to refuse The Liberty Lobby's petition. Sun Valley tried to argue to the Supreme Court that it had some sort of "inherent power" that allowed it to bypass its own laws. The justices were not swayed.
One has to wonder then, in the face of such a ruling, why would three city attorneys all give such legal advice to their city clerks, councils, and mayors? I believe that at the heart of the issue is the age-old antagonism between elected officials and direct democracy. Politicians, as a general rule, dislike the initiative process because it threatens their power. I believe that the mayors and city councils did not want these initiatives on the ballot, and instructed their attorneys to manufacture a legal-sounding justification. If the marijuana initiative had passed in Sun Valley, the council could have amended or repealed it outright. The cost of the election would have been less than $5,000.
Instead, the city waged a two-year legal grudge match against a small political group for the sole purpose of preventing them from even gathering signatures. Why would cities fight so hard against initiatives when it would be in their financial interests to just allow the process to play itself out? I believe such tactics are used to scare away other initiative proponents and to prevent them from even trying. It's not about the money. It's about keeping citizens in their places.
Even in the wake of the Supreme Court decision, the cities refuse to compensate me. I'm headed back to the Supreme Court in order to force the issue. Further, none of the cities have processed the initial petitions, even though the court's decision makes it clear that they must. Additionally, I believe all three cities continue to break state code by refusing to adopt a proper initiative process. I anticipate that I will have to file many more lawsuits against the three cities in order to force them to comply with the law.
This stubbornness amounts to nothing more than a grudge match that is being fought with your tax dollars. If you believe that the cities need to stop using your money against the initiative process, call up your local city attorney.
