A judge ruled Tuesday that a local law behind the operation shutting down illegal smoke shops in the city is unconstitutional.

A Queens shop filed the lawsuit, claiming that after the NYC Sheriff's office shut them down for selling marijuana illegally – a hearing found that they should be allowed to reopen – yet the sheriff kept them closed.

The judge found that the sheriff's ability to override the hearing's recommendations violated the shop's due process and that it should be able to open up again.

The city's Office of Cannabis Management declined to comment on the ruling.

A City Hall spokesman sent News 12 a statement:

"Illegal smoke shops and their dangerous products endanger young New Yorkers and our quality of life, and we continue to padlock illicit storefronts and protect communities from the health and safety dangers posed by illegal operators. To date, through ‘Operation Padlock to Protect,’ we have shut down over 1,200 illegal shops and seized over $82 million in illegal products that, for too long, have put people at risk. The Law Department has filed a notice of appeal on this case."

News 12 reported in August that 199 stores were shuttered in the Bronx. In Brooklyn, 223 storefronts were shut down.