Supreme Court to rule on whether regular marijuana smokers can own guns

The Supreme Court is considering whether regular marijuana users can legally own firearms, a decision that could put millions of Americans at risk of breaking the law.

On October 20, the Supreme Court ruled announced it will consider whether individuals who regularly use marijuana can legally own firearms, the AP reported. The case was prompted by the Trump administration’s request to revive charges against Ali Danial Hemani, a Texas man charged with a crime for keeping a gun in his home while admitting to regular marijuana use.

After a lower court largely struck down the law banning anyone who uses illegal drugs from owning firearms, the Justice Department appealed. While the Republican administration generally supports Second Amendment rights, it argues that this restriction is justified and claims that regular drug users pose a serious risk to public safety.

“And for about as long as legislatures have regulated drugs, they have prohibited the possession of guns by drug users and addicts — not just those under the influence of drugs,” the DOJ said. said in his appeal.

The FBI was monitoring Hemani for alleged ties to Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guards, which the court ruled is a global terrorist group. Authorities also allege that Hemani used and sold promethazine and cocaine, although his prosecution focuses on marijuana use. Hemani’s attorneys argue that the government is trying to “inflame and discredit” his character, insisting that he was not under the influence when the FBI discovered a Glock 19 at his home in Lewisville, Texas.

Hemani was charged under the federal law that prohibits the possession of firearms by anyone who is “an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance.”

The DOJ appeal argues that since the introduction of the federal firearms background check requirement in 1998, the drug user restriction has blocked more gun sales than any rule except the felon and fugitive ban, and is cited in hundreds of prosecutions each year.

Hemani’s lawyers argue that the government’s interpretation of the law is illogical, noting that about 19% of Americans use marijuana and about 32% own firearms, meaning millions could technically break the law and face up to 15 years in prison. Hemani’s lawyers rely on previous Supreme Court rulings and “common sense” to rule that “history and tradition alone support a ban on carrying firearms while intoxicated.”

In addition to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, two other appeals courts have limited the federal ban, ruling that suspects’ drug use must be assessed individually before restricting their rights. The Supreme Court is expected to hear arguments in the Hemani case next year, with a ruling expected by the end of June.

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