Nebraska Judge: WeedPress Didn’t Provide Evidence Of Religious Sincerity

Time to appeal.

DEFENDANT’S RENEWED PRO SE MOTION TO MODIFY PROBATION CONDITION PURSUANT TO THE NEBRASKA FIRST FREEDOM ACT

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THURSTON COUNTY, NEBRASKA

STATE OF NEBRASKA,

Plaintiff,

v.

JASON KARIMI,

Defendant.

Case No. CR23-13

DEFENDANT’S RENEWED PRO SE MOTION TO MODIFY PROBATION CONDITION

PURSUANT TO THE NEBRASKA FIRST FREEDOM ACT

(Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 20-701 – 20-705)

COMES NOW the Defendant, Jason Karimi, appearing pro se, and respectfully renews his motion to modify Probation Condition #11. In support of this renewed motion, Defendant states as follows:

I. Procedural History and Basis for Renewed Motion

1. On January 26, 2026, Defendant filed a Pro Se Motion to Modify Probation Condition seeking to modify term #11 of his probation order to permit limited, sacramental use of THC for religious purposes under the Nebraska First Freedom Act.

2. An evidentiary hearing was held on April 8, 2026. On July 1, 2026, this Court entered an Order denying the motion. The Court found that Defendant had not met his burden of establishing a “sincerely held religious belief” because Defendant did not personally testify and because Defendant’s sworn Affidavit and supporting evidence packet were not formally received into evidence at the hearing.

3. Defendant now renews this motion and submits his sworn Affidavit of Sincere Religious Belief (attached hereto as Exhibit A) along with this motion. Defendant is prepared to personally testify at an evidentiary hearing and to have his Affidavit formally offered and admitted into evidence so that the Court has direct evidence of Defendant’s sincerely held religious beliefs.

4. This Court retains continuing jurisdiction to modify probation conditions under Neb. Rev. Stat. § 29-2263(3). A renewed motion is appropriate when new or additional evidence of sincerity can be presented that was not formally admitted in the prior hearing.

II. Defendant’s Sincerely Held Religious Beliefs

5. Defendant is a sincere and practicing member of the Rastafari faith. Cannabis (ganja) is a sacred sacrament in Rastafari religious practice, used for prayer, meditation, scriptural contemplation, and spiritual communion.

6. Defendant’s use of cannabis is not recreational. It is undertaken solely as a religious act integral to his sincerely held beliefs.

7. Defendant’s religious beliefs regarding the sacramental use of cannabis are genuine, longstanding, and deeply held. He has practiced the Rastafari faith for many years, and cannabis as a religious sacrament is central to his spiritual life and conscience.

8. Defendant’s sworn Affidavit of Sincere Religious Belief (Exhibit A) sets forth these facts in detail under oath. Defendant is prepared to testify personally at a hearing to further establish the sincerity of his beliefs.

III. Probation Condition #11 Imposes a Substantial Burden on Religious Exercise

9. Probation Condition #11 categorically prohibits all use of marijuana or THC, with no mechanism for religious accommodation.

10. This condition forces Defendant to choose between (a) complying with probation and abandoning a central tenet of his religion, or (b) exercising his religion and risking violation and incarceration. This constitutes a substantial burden on religious exercise under the Nebraska First Freedom Act, Neb. Rev. Stat. § 20-703.

IV. The State Cannot Satisfy Strict Scrutiny

11. Once a substantial burden is shown, the State must demonstrate that denying a religious exemption furthers a compelling governmental interest and is the least restrictive means of doing so.

12. While the State has legitimate interests in public safety and probation compliance, a categorical ban is not the least restrictive means. Narrowly tailored conditions — such as those proposed below — can protect those interests while accommodating sincere religious practice.

13. Nebraska law favors individualized, narrowly tailored probation conditions rather than blanket prohibitions (see State v. Morgan, 301 Neb. 102 (2018); State v. Spang, 302 Neb. 285 (2019)).

V. Proposed Narrowly Tailored Accommodation

14. Defendant proposes the following conditions, which fully protect public safety while permitting his sincere religious exercise:

a. THC use shall be permitted solely for bona fide religious purposes;

b. Use shall occur only within a private residence;

c. No use within 24 hours of operating a motor vehicle;

d. No use within 24 hours prior to any probation meeting or drug test;

e. Defendant shall remain subject to random drug testing;

f. Defendant shall not possess THC outside of permitted locations or in quantities inconsistent with personal religious use.

These conditions are consistent with the accommodations approved in other jurisdictions for Rastafarian probationers and with the least-restrictive-means requirement of the First Freedom Act.

VI. Request for Hearing and Admission of Evidence

15. Defendant respectfully requests that this Court set this renewed motion for an evidentiary hearing.

16. At the hearing, Defendant will personally offer his Affidavit of Sincere Religious Belief (Exhibit A) for admission into evidence and is prepared to testify under oath regarding his sincerely held religious beliefs and practices.

WHEREFORE, Defendant respectfully requests that the Court:

A. Set this renewed motion for an evidentiary hearing;

B. Admit Defendant’s Affidavit of Sincere Religious Belief into evidence;

C. Modify Probation Condition #11 consistent with the Nebraska First Freedom Act, the Nebraska Constitution, and the United States Constitution by adopting the narrowly tailored accommodation set forth above; and

D. Grant such other and further relief as the Court deems just and proper.

Respectfully submitted this 1 day of July, 2026.

Jason Karimi, Pro Se

Email: Jahkingdomcome23@gmail.com

Certificate of Service

I hereby certify that on this 1 day of July, 2026, I served a true and correct copy of the foregoing Renewed Motion upon the Thurston County Attorney’s Office at the following address:

Bradley Easland, Deputy Thurston County Attorney

Jason Karimi, Pro Se