The lawsuit over Arkansas’ 2023 ban on Delta-8 THC and other drugs made from hemp has been reassigned to U.S. District Judge Kristine Baker, according to court documents issued last month.
THC is the main psychoactive drug in marijuana, and health experts increasingly warn the drug poses serious risks.
In 2018, Congress passed the federal Agriculture Improvement Act legalizing industrial hemp — or cannabis — that is low in THC. The goal was to let farmers grow cannabis plants for use in textiles like rope or cloth, but manufacturers have found ways to extract and refine the little bit of THC in industrial hemp. Doing this on a commercial scale means they can produce a lot of THC to infuse into drinks, candies, e-cigarettes, and other products.
In response, many state and federal policymakers have pushed back against these dangerous drugs.
For example, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has said that federal law prohibits hemp-derived THC in food products.
Massachusetts, South Dakota, California, and many other states have successfully prohibited food, drinks, and other products that contain THC made from hemp.
In 2023, Arkansas passed Act 629 by Sen. Tyler Dees (R – Siloam Springs) and Rep. Jimmy Gazaway (R – Paragould) to prohibit THC made from industrial hemp.
Family Council supported that good law, and the legislature voted to pass it.
However, members of the hemp industry filed a lawsuit against Act 629, and the law has been tied up in federal court ever since.
A court order issued on April 9 shows the case was randomly reassigned to U.S. District Judge Kristine Baker after Judge Billy Roy Wilson recused himself from the case due to his senior status. Judge Wilson has served on the federal court since 1993. Senior status is a form of judicial semi-retirement that reduces judges’ caseloads.
This year Sen. Dees and Rep. Gazaway filed S.B. 533 to address the issues raised in the lawsuit over Act 629.
S.B. 533 is a good law that will help prohibit intoxicating hemp products that contain THC and other drugs in Arkansas if Act 629 is ruled unconstitutional.
The law effectively stops THC and other drugs made from hemp from being put into food or drinks sold in the state.
It also ensures other hemp products — like CBD oil or cosmetics — do not contain dangerous drugs or other contaminants.
More and more, there is evidence that drugs made from hemp are harmful and need to be prohibited.
In Oregon — where marijuana is legal — the state’s Liquor and Cannabis Commission recently tested 51 samples of industrial hemp flowers as part of its “Operation Clean Leaf” initiative. All 51 hemp samples contained more THC than federal law allows.
Authorities also said the vast majority of hemp products were sold without proper age verification, and that some were tainted with pesticides. That’s part of the reason even liberal states like Oregon are taking steps to address these products.
Laws like Act 629 of 2023 and S.B. 533 are good measures that protect Arkansans from dangerous drugs. We believe courts will ultimately recognize that and let the state prohibit these drugs made from hemp.
Articles appearing on this website are written with the aid of Family Council’s researchers and writers.
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