(Seth McConnell, Denver Post file)

Top 20 tweets: Coats vs. Dish Network could rewrite pot, employment laws

Can a Colorado employer fire an employee for testing positive for marijuana?

That controversial question is at the center of a new Colorado Supreme Court case, which held its first hearing on Tuesday morning. Medical marijuana patient Brandon Coats was fired from Dish Network after a positive drug test. A series of trials have brought Coats’ case to Colorado’s highest court, and they will soon make a ruling — one that is being watched all over the U.S.

Of course Twitter made for some interesting reading after Coats’ first hearing — and here are 20 of the most entertaining and informative tweets about the case:


What the scene looked like inside the court:



Brandon Coats vs. Dish Network:
A special report from The Cannabist

Coats vs. Dish, round 1: A hearing that will have major implications for marijuana and the workplace ended Tuesday with the state’s most esteemed justices mostly scratching their heads.

Watch the video: Here’s the full hour-long video of the first meeting of Coats and Dish in front of the Colorado Supreme Court

Was Coats impaired while at work? “It doesn’t matter if he was impaired or not. It’s a violation,” Dish attorney Meghan Martinez said of Coats’ admitted marijuana use at home

More companies are drug testing: Some employers are taking a tougher stance against workers’ drug use since recreational marijuana became legal in Colorado, according to a new workplace survey

Editorial: Why some Colorado employers still need no-marijuana policies

The Colorado AG backs Dish: The state attorney general’s office says Coloradans do not have a right to use marijuana off the job, siding with Dish in its firing of a medical-marijuana patient.

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Random reactions online tended to be rooting for Coats:





Other onlookers sat back and observed the “trainwreck:”


The inclusion of marijuana makes a standard hearing something of a nail-biter:


There’s a lot on the line in the Coats case:


Read more of the day’s most informative and entertaining tweets …