After voters approve retail marijuana in Lamar, courts call the results invalid

LAMAR, Colo. (KRDO) -- After voters in the city of Lamar approved a ballot question approving the sale of recreational cannabis within the city, a district judge ruled that the election results were invalid. 

In his ruling last week, a district court judge stated that Ballot Questions 2A and 2B in the city of Lamar, which deal with the taxation and legality of recreational cannabis, were void following a complaint filed by a voter after the November 2021 election.

According to the election results, both 2A and 2B passed with roughly 55% of the vote in Lamar.

In the complaint obtained by 13 Investigates, the plaintiff claims there were issues with the petition process, and the questions on the ballot did not portray the same question on the petition. 

The petition, submitted by the Pueblo group SoCo Rocks, asks if city voters were to approve recreational marijuana sales, should the city impose additional sales tax on retail marijuana and retail marijuana products. 

Ballot question 2A asks the voters if the city should place a 5% sales tax on the sale of retail marijuana in Lamar, while 2B asks if the sale of retail marijuana should exist in Lamar. 

The suit goes on to say the petitioners, SoCo Rocks also failed to obtain enough signatures for the Lamar City Council to consider placing the ballot question.

In the court records obtained by 13 Investigates it states that within Lamar’s city charter a petitioner must gather enough signatures to meet 15% of the number of voters from the last election cycle. The petition submitted by the Pueblo group SoCo Rocks only obtained 5%. 

Based on the approval of the petition from the city clerk, Lamar City Council approved the two ordinances. The ordinances placed both questions on the November 2021 ballot. 

In the district judge’s order, he states the petition presented to Lamar City Council was invalid, and should never have been presented to them in the first place. The judge found there were multiple violations of Lamar’s charter associated with this particular petition-initiated ballot process for 2A and 2B. 

Lamar Mayor Kirk Crespin tells 13 Investigates city council will hold a special meeting on April 4 to formalize the city's direction moving forward.

"We will also have a work session prior to this meeting to discuss any questions and to hear from our constituents," Crespin said in an email to 13 Investigates.  "The City Councils' intent is to make our decisions for the future direction as a whole.  As such, I do not have any other comment at this time."

Lamar City Clerk Linda Williams, the city employee accused of approving the invalid petition, declined to comment on our story.

The Pueblo group identified in the complaint as SoCo Rocks is actually called The Herbal Garden. The cannabis business has dispensaries and grows up and down I-25 from Pueblo to Trinidad.

Terry Sanchez, the General Manager of The Herbal Garden, says plans were in place to invest thousands of dollars into the Lamar economy.

“We were planning on a rather large presence in Lamar," Sanchez said. "Upwards of about 60 jobs, we would put a large grow in that community, and we would put a dispensary in that community.” 

The Herbal Garden gathered more than 200 signatures for a petition to get a question on the ballot pertaining to retail marijuana. However, Sanchez says they had nothing to do with the language on the petition. He says the city wrote the language for the petition.

Sanchez is calling on Lamar City Council to get another question on a ballot as soon as possible.

"No matter how it got on the ballot, the people voted and made their choice," Sanchez said. "The voters spoke in a very very loud fashion, and in my opinion city council has the opportunity to truly be the heroes in this situation."

According to state law, city councils are permitted to approve ballot measures without a petition.