FILE – In this Feb. 19, 2015 file photo Hope, left, and Mike Reilly of Pueblo, Colo., attend a news conference in reaction to the announcement that a federal lawsuit is being filed on behalf of the couple by a Washington D.C.-based group to shut down the state’s $800-million-a-year marijuana industry, in Denver. A federal trial in Colorado on Monday, Oct. 29, 2018, could have far-reaching effects on the budding U.S. marijuana industry if a jury sides with the couple who say having a cannabis business as a neighbor hurts their property’s value. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)

Lawsuit over pot, property values could have broad impacts

DENVER — A federal trial in Colorado could have far-reaching effects on the United States’ budding marijuana industry if a jury sides with a couple who say having a cannabis business as a neighbor hurts their property’s value.

The trial set to begin Monday in Denver is the first time a jury will consider a lawsuit using federal anti-racketeering law to target cannabis companies. But the marijuana industry has closely watched the case since 2015, when attorneys with a Washington, D.C.-based firm first filed their sweeping complaint on behalf of Hope and Michael Reilly.

One of the couple’s lawyers, Brian Barnes, said the Reillys bought the southern Colorado land for its views of Pikes Peak and have since built a house on the rural property. They also hike and ride horses there.

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