The former general counsel for the Oklahoma State Department of Health filed a lawsuit against the agency Tuesday on behalf of a woman who claims the medical marijuana regulatory framework Gov. Kevin Stitt signed into law last week is unconstitutional.
In the lawsuit, Julia Ezell wrote that House Bill 2612 will take away the due process rights of her client, Leslie Collum, a licensed patient working in the medical field and a commercial medical marijuana license holder.
Collum seeks a temporary injunction, and eventually a permanent block, against enforcement of House Bill 2612, as well as the payment of attorneys’ fees.
The petition was filed early Tuesday in Oklahoma County District Court, where Collum is a resident. It names Tom Bates, the interim health commissioner, as a defendant in his official capacity.
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Collum owns Painted Nurse Cannabis Consultant LLC, which does business as the Painted Nurse Apothecary in the Paseo Arts District of Oklahoma City.
The lawsuit alleges that the language of HB 2612, also known as the “Unity Bill,” wrongly gives the Health Department clearance to take disciplinary action against commercial licensees for any reason it deems appropriate.
That could include license suspension, revocation or some unspecified “other action,” the petition states.
The law created by HB 2612 grants express rule-making authority to the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority, which is under the Health Department’s umbrella. It allows the OMMA to hire its own investigators to look into alleged violations of the law, which can generate disciplinary proceedings.
“The provisions of HB 2612 violate the void-for-vagueness doctrine in that they do not give medical marijuana commercial license holders adequate knowledge of what acts may subject their commercial licenses to disciplinary actions and what those disciplinary actions might be,” the lawsuit petition states.
Collum argued in the suit that it is also contrary to the spirit of State Question 788 to permit employers in “safety-sensitive” positions such as hers to inquire about whether employees have patient licenses.
Sen. Greg McCortney, R-Ada, is among several lawmakers who have said it is important for employers in fields such as firefighting, patient care and heavy machinery operation to have clear guidance on how to address the issue.
Stitt signed HB 2612 on Thursday after it received widespread bipartisan support in both legislative chambers. It largely came from the meetings of a medical marijuana legislative working group, of which McCortney and House Majority Floor Leader Jon Echols, R-Oklahoma City, are co-chairmen.
The law will take effect 90 days after the Legislature adjourns, which must take place by 5 p.m. May 31.
Collum’s suit contends that is not enough time for her and other licensees to get into compliance with the entirety of regulations outlined in HB 2612.
“(Collum’s) ability to earn a living using her state nursing license, and the ability of other employees around the state, such as firefighters, is jeopardized without affording her due process of law,” the petition states.
It goes on to say Collum will suffer “irreparable harm” if HB 2612 takes effect.
As an example, Collum argues that the bill violates equal protection laws because it subjects people like her who have a “recognized disability” that can be treated with medical marijuana to an “unreasonable classification.”
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