Soul Quest Church of Mother Earth Loses Appeal Over Ayahuasca

A church seeking permission to lawfully use and handle the psychedelic ayahuasca was rejected by the Eleventh Circuit, which said the lawsuit over the DEA’s denial of an exemption was properly dismissed by a lower court for lack of jurisdiction.

Because the US Drug Enforcement Administration denied the church’s request under the Controlled Substances Act’s “control and enforcement” subchapter, the district court lacked the power to review the agency’s denial on the merits, the court said Monday.

A party challenging a final decision made under that subchapter—21 USC § 877—must seek judicial review from an appropriate federal appeals court, not ...