Why Can't Medical Cannabis Patients Own Guns?

Whatever your thoughts on America’s gun culture, it cannot be denied that many Americans consider gun ownership a fundamental right. The ease of access to firearms that one can argue is a constitutional right guaranteed by the 2nd Amendment, combined with a well-funded and highly influential gun lobby, means essentially that in America, if you want a gun, you can pretty much get one.

The statistics bear this out. A 2017 Gallup Poll estimates that there are 393 million registered firearms in America, meaning that there are currently more guns than people. According to a 2018 report, that breaks down to 120.5 guns per every 100 people.

Even more surprising, half of that total amount of weaponry is owned by only 3% of the population. With numbers like these, it may come as a surprise that anyone in America over the age of 18 cannot purchase a firearm if they so desire. However, there are a few exceptions to state gun laws enforced by the federal government, including people with violent criminal histories, mental health issues, and patients who hold medical marijuana cards. If you hold a medical marijuana card, you cannot purchase a gun.

The reason for MMJ patients who have followed their state’s laws in legally obtaining a medical marijuana card to be grouped into the same firearm prohibited status as violent criminals and the mentally ill dates back to the The Gun Control Act of 1968, which prohibits anyone from possessing guns or ammunition if they use or are addicted to cannabis or any other controlled substance.

An open letter from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) put out in 2011 restated their position that the 1968 law still stands. The letter says that anyone who uses marijuana, regardless of state law, qualifies as an "unlawful user of" the controlled substance, and is therefore prohibited from owning a gun. Regardless of changing societal attitudes about marijuana, medical marijuana patients cannot own guns.

The ATF is responsible for gun restrictions on medical cannabis patients. photo credit

In that same letter, federal officials clarified that possession of a medical marijuana card served as reasonable cause to suspect the card owner of being an unlawful marijuana user, even if that person obtained the card to use marijuana by following the law.

This ruling has prevented many 2nd Amendment fans who could benefit greatly from owning an MMJ card from applying for one because they also want to buy or own a gun. Because their MMJ card is registered in a government database, they will be flagged in a background check as being a suspected consumer of marijuana. The only legal way the ATF will allow a medical cannabis patient to even have a gun in their home is if their spouse does not consume cannabis, purchases a firearm, and keeps it locked away with no access to the MMJ card holder.

Despite the clear legal language, enforcing the 1968 Gun Control Act in its full capacity is incredibly difficult in the age of legalized cannabis. For example, according to the federal law gun owners are not allowed to be around people who are known cannabis consumers or growers. The idea behind this was to create sentence-enhancing criminal charges for drug dealers who were packing heat. However, armed security guards hired to watch over a dispensary, money transfers from the store, or marijuana transportation throughout a legalized state are also technically in violation of federal gun laws and could be charged for doing their jobs.

It's becoming harder to enforce cannabis gun laws with more states legalizing. photo credit

Officials in legalized states like Colorado essentially look the other way on enforcing these gun laws to ensure that the industry is protected. Otherwise, marijuana businesses would be sitting ducks for criminals who somehow gained access to a firearm despite the ATF’s strict regulations and clear legal language.

And while US federal law is clear on the necessity for all licensed firearm dealers to perform background checks on those seeking to purchase a gun, non-MMJ card-holders who smoke weed can pretty easily purchase a firearm.

Without a conviction for any marijuana-related charges on your record, you can pretty easily smoke a joint in the morning, walk to a licensed gun shop in the afternoon, check “no” on the “Are you an unlawful user of, or addicted to, marijuana or any other depressant, stimulant, narcotic drug, or any other controlled substance?” question, and have your weapon in five days. This is, of course, illegal and anyone who does this can be charged with a felony.

However, if you’re caught with a gun and are around marijuana or known marijuana producers, federal gun laws will still come down extra hard on you for violating the 1968 Gun Rights Act, no matter what your state laws say about the legality of marijuana.

If you already owned guns prior to legalization and are applying for a medical marijuana card, the law gets very fuzzy. You will be unable to buy more guns, but so far there are no clear instructions on what to do about the guns you already have. Giving them up could open you to prosecution for having them around your marijuana in the first place. In other words, this places medical marijuana patients in a gray area, where they can own guns, but can’t get caught with them.

MMJ patients have filed lawsuits in several states to try to get these policies reversed. In one case filed in 2016, a federal appeals court ruled that the 1968 Gun Rights Act did not violate the Second Amendment rights of a Nevada MMJ patient who was prohibited from purchasing a firearm by a local gun store in 2011.

More recently, a Philadelphia-based doctor named Matthew Roman filed a lawsuit against the federal government in 2018 after being prohibited from purchasing a firearm from a licensed dealer in Pennsylvania. The doctor has both prescribed medical marijuana to patients and uses it himself to deal with PTSD. He was trying to buy the handgun for protection and answered the background check questionnaire honestly.

His suit alleges that both his right to own a firearm and his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination were violated, since the federal firearms transaction form requires MMJ patients to state that they have used cannabis “unlawfully” even if it’s legally sanctioned under state law. While the outcome of this lawsuit is still uncertain, Matthew Roman’s medical license was suspended in 2019 by the state due to his unhinged YouTube appearances, so it might be a good thing in this individual case to not provide him with a gun.

However, if you are an alcoholic, you can hop in your car right now and buy that gun. You can even announce it to the licensed gun salesman on your way in – the law is (hypocritically) on your side. Hopefully we’ll see these silly paradoxes become a thing of the past as cannabis reform continues to spread and more people (especially our friends at the ATF) become educated on the actual science behind cannabis.

Can you get a gun with a medical card in Colorado?

Only if you purchase it from someone who does not do a background check, and it is still illegal to possess the gun.

Can you own a gun with a medical card in Florida?

It’s illegal to own a gun in Florida with a medical card, since it violates federal law. 

Can I own a gun if I have an expired medical card Pennsylvania?

It is still illegal to own a gun even if you have an expired medical card, since there’s already proof that you are or were an unlawful user of marijuana. It’s the same as having a past marijuana conviction.

Can medical marijuana patients own a gun in any state?

It is currently federally illegal for any cannabis consumer to own a gun in any state.

Do you believe medical marijuana patients should have access to firearms? Why or why not? Share your opinions in the comments below.

Photo Credit: Ryan (license)