Not Everyone Can Live The American Dream: Court Denies Citizenship To Legal Cannabis Business Owner

A legal resident who runs a state-legal cannabis dispensary and decides to apply for U.S. citizenship risks being denied, according to a recent ruling by a federal court of appeals.

The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals determined that Maria Elena Reimers' request for naturalization could be rejected because she runs a licensed marijuana business in Washington state, reported Reason Magazine.

The stumbling block in the case of the Salvadoran immigrant is the federal Controlled Substances Act (CSA), under which cannabis remains illegal.

Reimers, who has no former convictions, filed a claim stating that she felt discriminated against as compared to proprietors of marijuana businesses who are U.S. citizens.

The court ruled that disregarding the CSA signifies that an individual lacks "good moral character" and hence, is ineligible to be naturalized. The 9th Circuit, referring to Hussein v. Barrett (2016), confirmed that going against the CSA is "automatically an impediment to naturalization."

Moreover, according to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) letter, Reimers is viewed as an "illicit trafficker of a controlled substance," which is why it didn't grant her naturalization.

Background

In 2004, Reimers and her now-husband Rick who was born in the U.S. moved from El Salvador to the U.S. Some ten years later, Rick opened a recreational dispensary in Ephrata, Washington, where Reimers is a co-owner and employee.

After submitting a naturalization application in May 2017, she received a denial letter from USCIS the following year after two interviews. An appeal hearing in May 2019 resulted in yet another denial a year later. She then filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Washington in late 2020.

The District Court granted a summary judgment in favor of USCIS in February 2022, based exclusively on Reimers' marijuana business. She then appealed the decision to the 9th Circuit and in April 2023, the court heard her case.

What's Next?

If Reimers' appeal is unsuccessful, she'll have to look into other approaches to get US citizenship.

"We were advised that we could sell the business and maybe I could apply later…but is it fair?" Reimers said. "We can divorce…but then he cannot even give me child support because I [would] be taking money from him that he's making out of the marijuana business, and then I could not apply for my citizenship."

Photo: Courtesy of Justin Cron on Unsplash