The District of Columbia Court of Appeals dismissed a challenge last week from a group of Northwest D.C. parents and residents who sought to block a medical cannabis dispensary from opening within 1,000 feet of several schools, ruling that the court lacked jurisdiction to review the dispute.
The case centered on Green Theory LLC’s successful application to operate a dispensary at 4828 MacArthur Boulevard NW. While the license application was pending, ten residents—calling themselves the “Wolverton Group”—filed a protest before the Alcoholic Beverage and Cannabis Board (ABCA), arguing the location would endanger students and expose the business to heightened federal drug penalties. Green Theory ended up being the first unlicensed business to transition to the legal market in 2024.
The Board dismissed the protest, concluding that under the Medical Cannabis Amendment Act of 2022, only Advisory Neighborhood Commissions (ANCs) have legal standing to challenge dispensary license applications. After the Board granted Green Theory its license, the residents and their nonprofit, 1000 Feet DC, Inc., petitioned the Court of Appeals to overturn the decision.
In a unanimous opinion authored by Judge Deahl and joined by Judge Howard and Senior Judge Steadman, the court ruled that it lacked jurisdiction because the matter was not a “contested case” under D.C. law. The court explained that direct review of agency actions is only available when a statute, regulation or constitutional right requires a trial-type hearing.
“Absent a timely protest from an ANC, no regulation, statute, or constitutional mandate required the Board to hold a trial-type hearing before issuing Green Theory’s medical cannabis retailer license,” the court wrote.
The petitioners argued that parents have a constitutional right to protect their children from exposure to cannabis and that the Board’s decision violated both due process and equal protection guarantees. The court rejected those claims, holding that parental rights do not extend to controlling the District’s licensing of nearby businesses, and that the Council of the District of Columbia had rational reasons for limiting protests of cannabis licenses to ANCs, including streamlining the regulatory process and fostering a competitive medical cannabis market.
The opinion stated that “[w]hile parents have a ‘constitutionally recognized ‘fundamental right . . . to make decisions concerning the care, custody and control of their children,’ that right is not implicated by the Board’s discrete licensing decisions for businesses near their children’s schools.”
The ruling means Green Theory’s license remains in effect, and the dispensary may continue operating despite its proximity to local schools.
The court stressed, however, that residents are not left without options. While they cannot directly appeal to the Court of Appeals absent an ANC protest, they may still seek relief in D.C. Superior Court in non-contested cases.
The decision marks another milestone in the District’s evolving cannabis regulatory framework, which lawmakers have repeatedly amended in recent years to expand access to medical cannabis while balancing community concerns.
