How Minnesota marijuana legalization impacts South Dakota – Medical Marijuana Program Connection

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Dakota News Now) – While it isn’t official yet, Minnesota is likely to legalize recreational marijuana. A bill that would legalize it has been sent to Governor Walz’s desk and he is expected to sign it into law before their legislative session ends on May 22.

Minnehaha County Sheriff Mike Milstead says that South Dakota is prepared to uphold the law if people bring Marijuana across the border.

Communities close to the border with Minnesota may soon have access to recreational marijuana, but South Dakota law isn’t changing anytime soon.

“We enforce them equally and we enforce them based on South Dakota laws, so if you travel into Minnesota and buy recreational marijuana or gummies or whatever it may be and come across the border into South Dakota, you face consequences,” Milstead said.

The use of Marijuana for medical purposes is legal in both states, but it can create challenges for law enforcement.

“It complicates things at times, but also medical marijuana in the state of South Dakota has been identified as legal for people to deal with medical conditions that they have,” Milstead explained. “We’ve learned to deal with it, but this is not a recreational marijuana state and so we’ll enforce our laws as needed. We’re certainly aware of what’s going on in our neighboring state.”

Sheriff Milstead predicts that we’ll see negative impacts of Minnesota’s decision on the roads based on statistics from other states.

“I say those things…