Judge Ronald Culpepper of Pierce County has upheld a ruling to allow small cities in Washinton State to continue banning small, legally licensed pot shops. Critics of the ruling have suggested that this could have major negative implications on the State's experiment on legal pot, which seeks to curb the black market of marijuana and protect public health through a safe and regulated system.

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The case was brought to court when the proprietor of a marijuana establishment sued the suburb of Fife, Washington for barring his licensed business from setting up shop. Tedd Wetherbee, the owner, felt that the city wasn't allowing him to open up and run his business which he was legally entitled to operate.

According to Judge Culpepper's ruling, although  Initiative 502 (I-502), has legalized adult use of recreational marijuana, individual state laws and ordinances on shop bans must still be upheld by law.

Lawyers for Wetherbee, as well as supporters of I-502, argue that the ruling undermines the voter-approved state law and the desire for it to pave the way to regulate marijuana sales in a safe, legal way, as well as to halt the black market sale of pot better. They deem I-502 as a measure more effective than prohibition.

However, Judge Culpepper believes that allowing the small county of Fife to uphold its ban on shops and growers will not have any adverse affect on the overall state of Washington to halt illegal sales of pot.

He acklowledges that the ruling may differ for bigger cities with larger areas and population, and must be analyzed on a case-by-case basis.

Those who followed the case are worried about the implications of the ruling against the will of the voters who approved the adoption of I-502. 

Rep. Chris Hurst, who heads the House committee that oversees the marijuana industry, argues that if individual portions of the State are permitted to ban the legal sale of pot, then the possibility of opening doors for criminal elements to continue to flourish in those areas remains. 

Wetherbee plans to appeal the ruling. 

Tags502, pot shops, Judge Ronald Culpepper