SCOTUS Could Restore Gun Rights Stripped From Pot Users

Under current federal law, anyone who uses a controlled substance — including marijuana — faces prohibition from purchasing or possessing a firearm. That means millions of Americans in legal-weed states like Arizona are technically federal criminals every time they touch a gun.

The case before the Court asks a simple question: does the Constitution allow Congress to disarm an entire class of people based on their choice of a legal recreational substance? Based on the Court's 2022 landmark ruling in Bruen, the answer is no.

Bruen set a clear standard — gun restrictions must be rooted in the historical tradition of firearm regulation at the founding. There is zero historical precedent for disarming Americans over drug use. The Founders had no concept of federal controlled substances law.

Arizona is ground zero for this fight. The state legalized recreational marijuana in 2020, yet the ATF's Form 4473 — the federal background check form every gun buyer must complete — still requires purchasers to certify they are not an unlawful user of controlled substances. Answer honestly as a marijuana user and you get denied. Lie, and you've committed a federal felony.

This isn't about getting high and handling firearms irresponsibly. This is about the federal government using a bureaucratic technicality to gut the constitutional rights of millions of otherwise law-abiding citizens — veterans, working people, responsible adults — who live in states that democratically chose to legalize marijuana.

Acting AG Todd Blanche and the Justice Department need to take a hard look at whether continuing to prosecute this statute makes any sense while the Court deliberates. The ATF has long used drug-user prohibitions as a backdoor to expand the prohibited-persons list far beyond what the Constitution permits.

A ruling in favor of gun rights here would be a massive win — not just for marijuana users, but for every American who believes the Second Amendment means what it says.

Watch this case closely. If the Court gets it right, millions of Americans get their rights back. If it punts or rules wrong, the feds will have a blueprint to strip your gun rights based on whatever substance or behavior they decide to target next.