Supreme Court ponders law making it a crime for gun owners to use marijuana

[groundloop]

Source: NPR

The Supreme Court hears arguments Monday in an important gun case that has united an array of strange bedfellows, from conservative gun rights groups to liberal civil liberties groups. At issue is a federal law making it a crime for drug users to possess a firearm. It's the same law that was used to prosecute then-President Joe Biden's son for illegal gun possession — only this case involves marijuana use and gun ownership.

The briefs in the case present diametrically different versions of the facts. On one side, the Trump administration portrays Ali Danial Hemani as a drug dealer and someone with terrorist ties and a marijuana habit. Importantly, he is not being prosecuted for any of those offenses, however. Rather, the government has charged Hemani with violating a federal gun law that bars drug addicts from possession of firearms, a crime punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals threw out the indictment, declaring that the federal law violates Hemani's Second Amendment right to own a gun.

The Justice Department appealed to the Supreme Court, arguing that because Hemani admitted to FBI agents that he used marijuana several times a week, he is a "persistent" drug user, thus rendering illegal the possession of the gun he bought legally and keeps securely in his home.

Read more: https://www.npr.org/2026/03/02/nx-s1-5718476/supreme-court-guns-marijuana

[Srkdqltr]

1. Sure, that will happen.

[Ferrets are Cool]

2. LOLOL What about liquors.

That causes many more gun shootings than marijuana ever did.

[Easterncedar]

4. Ha. Yes. Let's prohibit that very lethal drug and gun combination. .

Maybe just outlaw liquor altogether! Then watch all kinds of violence and traffic deaths go down.

Bathtub gin, anyone?

Kinda loving the confusion this case is causing.

[Easterncedar]

3. Ha ha ha

[Emile]

5. What about cigarettes, aspirin, etc. etc.

[Farmer-Rick]

6. Anithystamines use can lead to hallucinations

If you mix them and fail to follow label directions.

All you allergic people will also need to give up your guns to the police.

Pedo Trump and his Nazi pals are coming to take your guns away.

[twodogsbarking]

7. What if you snort cocaine off of a terlet seat?

[Emile]

8. As long as you have a magic R, then you

can do anything you want.

[Javaman]

9. running cover for piss drunk Pete.

boozing and guns good, pot and guns bad.

got it.

[Timewas]

10. Actually

Anyone who uses any recreational drugs is barred from purchasing a gun, if you answer truthfully on your background check paper and say yes to that you will be turned down.

[radical noodle]

12. Yes, wouldn't this "law" be redundant

Or am I missing something?

[sarisataka]

17. The law is in place

The argument is to have it struck down

[radical noodle]

23. Ah! I read through that too quickly

[WestMichRad]

21. Not every firearm purchase goes through legal channels.

[radical noodle]

22. Good point

[Timewas]

25. That is true

And not a lot can be done about that unfortunately

[Timewas]

24. ??

Don't understand that...The recreational drug question is on ther backround check form... I seriously doubt anyone actually admits it when filling the form out if they do they will be denied, If they say no and they have ever applied for the prescription under the old laws and are caught it is a felony.

[pandr32]

11. There are persistant drug users in the White House.

They have access to ICE goons and weapons of war, and are using them!

[Bayard]

13. I don't see how that will stick in states were pot is legal

[sarisataka]

18. Federal law

It applies regardless of state law, there even is a note on the form when purchasing a gun that it is illegal even if your state allows marijuana use

[Timewas]

26. Well

Since background checks are mostly a federal requirement and pot is illegal at he fed. level..

[sarisataka]

14. People are missing the point

The prohibition is the current law.

An alliance of Second Amendment proponents and activists who want marijuana legal at the Federal level are challenging that the law is unconstitutional.

The goal is to have SCOTUS strike down the law which prohibits all marijuana users (regardless of state law or medical necessity) from legally owning guns.

[ashredux]

15. Well, I'd rather have the guy smoking a joint with the gun that a guy with a bottle of scotch and a gun

[Quanto Magnus]

16. If they're going to do that

they should prevent people who drink alcohol from owning guns too.

[SWBTATTReg]

19. So, it will be illegal for pot smokers to even drive, drive, have guns? Crap, there already are probably 100s of

thousands of pot smokers (who may or may not be smoking pot at the time) driving on our roads, etc. Probably more. How many are doped up on pills? How many are drunk (quite a few). And, just how often does a person grab that gun of theirs?

My gun is by my bed, I check it perhaps once a year or less. If anything, just to make sure that it's there in case of a break-in (and that's all).

An over-reaction I suspect, trying to get the American public focused on something else besides trump's disasters.

[cstanleytech]

20. Should it be illegal for alcoholics to have guns then?