A Nevada judge has denied a request by the state’s alcohol industry intended to put the brakes on emergency regulations designed to facilitate the distribution of recreational marijuana.
According to a report from the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Carson City District Judge Todd Russell, who was allegedly on the fence about how a marijuana shortage could be considered an emergency situation, recently shot down a proposed restraining order initiated by a group of liquor distributors, ruling that blocking the regulations would sabotage state tax revenues.
When Nevada voters put their seal of approval on an initiative aimed at legalizing marijuana, they gave the state’s liquor wholesalers exclusive distribution rights for the first year and a half. However, despite the fact that most of the companies wanted absolutely nothing to do with canna-business, a small group took it to the courts to ensure that no other operations were allowed to participate. The snag prevented the state from issuing any licenses to put recreational marijuana in around 60 dispensaries.
So, when recreational pot sales began on July 1, an event that brought thousands of customers into unprepared…