On April 19, U.S. District Court Judge Thomas Kleeh, a Trump appointee, ordered the city of Salem, West Virginia, to restore a local initiative to the June 4, 2019 ballot. The order is oral and is not yet in writing. UPDATE: see this news story.

The city had removed an initiative to decriminalize marijuana even though it had enough valid signatures. City officials felt the initiative, if passed, would contradict state law and be invalid. But the proponents charged that it violates due process for the city to have taken that action. The case is Hyman v City of Salem, n.d., 1:19cv-75.

This decision is similar to one from last year concerning local initiatives in Portage County, Ohio. Thanks to Mark Brown for this news.