An Ohio judge has blocked the state’s ban on intoxicating hemp beverages from taking effect, Cleveland.com reports. In the limited ruling, Judge Jeremiah S. Ray called the ban “inherently discriminatory” because it treats similar products differently based on who is selling them.
The lawsuit was filed by Seattle, Washington-based company North Fork Distribution, which operates Cycling Frog, who asked the judge to prohibit Fremont police from enforcing the law.
The judge’s order blocks law enforcement officers and anyone working with them from taking action under the law, and protects North Fork, along with businesses tied to the company, from enforcement. The ruling currently applies only to the plaintiffs.
A separate lawsuit filed on March 30 by two hemp retailers is also making its way through the courts. That lawsuit contends that Ohio lawmakers broke the state’s “single subject rule” when passing the ban. The rule states that bills can address only one main issue.
Breweries have previously sued over the ban; however, the state Supreme Court dismissed one of the cases while a Franklin County Judge allowed the law to take effect in another. Activists also tried to challenge the law via a referendum, but didn’t collect enough signatures to put the issue to voters.
