It seems only natural that California would err on the greener side of things.

On March 19, the California Supreme Court upheld the state’s legalization of cannabis when it de-published a prior ruling that said cannabis was illegal in California based on its illegality at the federal level. The decision stemmed from a twice-appealed lawsuit filed by Lompoc property owner Janna Caron Crandall of JCCrandall LLC, who sued the County of Santa Barbara after the Board of Supervisors allowed cannabis to be transported on an easement road that runs through her property. 

While both Crandall and Santa Barbara County remain bound by the prior ruling, its de-publishing means it can no longer be used as legal precedent for other cases moving forward.

The county was initially sued in 2021 after granting a conditional-use permit to Santa Rita Holdings — a company that leased land next to the Crandall property from the Hughes family — to grow and transport cannabis. Access to and from the Hughes property relies solely on an easement road that runs through the Crandall property.

Crandall claimed that, according to the terms of the 1998 easement, the road can’t be used for federally prohibited activities, and thus, the county acted unlawfully in granting the permit to Santa Rita. Judge Jed Beebe of Santa Barbara Superior Court thought otherwise and effectively denied Crandall’s claims in 2023.

Ernest Guadiana, Crandall’s attorney, appealed that decision to the District Court of Appeals in Ventura, affirming that the supervisors acted unlawfully.

The appellate court reversed Judge Beebe’s decision in October 2024, with Judge Arthur Gilbert saying that “cannabis cultivation and transportation are illegal in California as long as it remains illegal under federal law,” citing the Supremacy Clause of the U.S. Constitution. “The scope of the easement does not include the illegal transport of cannabis.” 

Santa Rita’s conditional-use permit was rescinded, and Judge Gilbert’s opinion was set to be published and used as legal precedent throughout California.

However, Santa Barbara County appealed the appellate decision to the California Supreme Court in February 2025. The state’s Department of Cannabis Control (DCC) intervened later that month and requested that the prior appellate decision also be de-published.

While the California Supreme Court did not accept the county’s request for review, it did agree to depublish the appellate decision. Santa Rita’s permit is still vacated, but other attorneys will not be able to cite Judge Gilbert’s opinion as precedent.

In other words, weed is still legal in California.

“We are pleased that the Court agreed to address that Court of Appeal decision at the Department of Cannabis Control’s request, supporting California law and its legal cannabis industry,” said DCC Director Nicole Elliot in a statement.

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