Possession of marijuana has been decriminalized or legalized in 23 states, and 32 states have passed laws making marijuana legal for use by qualifying medical patients. Despite these state policy reforms, possession, cultivation, and sale of marijuana remain illegal under federal law, and some federal agencies continue to discriminate against marijuana users with little or no regard for state laws.
Some advocates have expressed particular concerns about the infringement on gun rights that state-legal marijuana consumers may face. Under federal law, it is considered illegal for a user of a controlled substance — which includes marijuana — to possess a firearm.1 On this basis, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) policies prohibit federally licensed firearm dealers from selling firearms or ammunition to any person whom they know to be a marijuana user.
How can advocates work to address this problem?
(1) Support reforming federal law to end unjustified discrimination against marijuana users. Advocates who wish to preserve the Second Amendment rights of the millions of Americans who use marijuana should urge their representatives in Congress to change marijuana laws and policies relative to the Second Amendment. For example, Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) opposed marijuana legalization in her state, but, after voters passed it, she became an advocate for protecting the Second Amendment rights of her constituents who choose to use marijuana.2 Advocates could also urge the National Rifle Association (NRA) — which has been silent on the issue — and other Second Amendment advocacy organizations to defend marijuana consumers’ rights.
(2) In states with medical marijuana programs, insist on strong privacy protections. State agencies should be required to protect the privacy of patients who participate in medical marijuana programs, and they should be prohibited from sharing information with ATF or any other federal agencies that may wish to undermine the rights of patients. If a state’s law requires patients to register with the state, the registry must be kept secure and must not be subject to fishing expeditions by local, state, or federal law enforcement.
(3) Support eliminating marijuana possession penalties at the state level, or at least reducing them to a civil violation. There is no more certain way for a marijuana user’s Second Amendment rights to be compromised than for that person to be arrested and charged with marijuana possession. Arrests and court appearances are a matter of public record, and they are often reported by local media, potentially bringing an individual’s private use of marijuana to the attention of federal agencies. Reducing penalties to a civil violation (often called “decriminalization”) is one way of minimizing the likelihood that a marijuana user’s rights will be compromised. If a state truly wishes to protect its residents from discrimination by ATF and other federal agencies, the best policy would be to eliminate state-level marijuana possession penalties altogether.