According to a recent decision by a federal court of appeals, a legal resident who decides to seek citizenship while operating a state-permitted cannabis business stands the danger of having their application rejected.
Maria Elena Reimers’ Citizenship Application Denied Due To Washington State’s Legal Marijuana Company
Maria Elena Reimers’ application for citizenship may be denied because she owns a legal marijuana company in Washington state, according to the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, according to Reason Magazine.
The federal Controlled Substances Act (CSA), which continues to make cannabis illegal, is the impediment in the immigrant from El Salvador’s case.
Reimers, who has no prior convictions, filed a lawsuit claiming that she was differently treated from marijuana company owners who are US citizens.
According to the court, disobeying the CSA indicates that a person lacks “good moral character” and is therefore unfit to be naturalized. Hussein v. Barrett (2016), cited by the 9th Circuit, established that disobeying the CSA “automatically” prevents one from becoming a citizen.
USCIS Denies Naturalization To Reimers, Illegal Drug Traffickers
Aside from that, in the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) letter, Reimers is seen as an “illicit trafficker of a controlled substance,” which is why it denied her naturalization.
Reimers and her husband-to-be Rick, who was born in the country, relocated there from El Salvador in 2004. Reimers is a co-owner and employee of Rick’s recreational dispensary in Ephrata, Washington, which he launched about 10 years later.
She submitted a citizenship application in May 2017 and, after two interviews, received a refusal letter from USCIS the following year. A year after an appeal hearing in May 2019, the request was once again denied. After that, she lodged a complaint in America. late 2020: Eastern District of Washington District Court.
In February 2022, the District Court issued a summary judgment in favor of USCIS that was solely based on Reimers’ marijuana-related company. She subsequently filed an appeal with the 9th Circuit, and the court heard it in April 2023.
Next, what?
If Reimers’ appeal is denied, she will have to consider alternative methods of obtaining US citizenship.
Reimers asked, “Is it fair? We were told we might sell the company, and maybe I could apply afterward. We can divorce, but he won’t be able to pay me child support because I’d be removing money from him that he earns from the marijuana industry, and that would prevent me from obtaining my citizenship.
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