A pothead gun owner won in court. But don’t light the joint just yet
Few public policy issues divide Americans as deeply as laws regulating gun ownership or the recreational use of marijuana. Yet, last week, the Supreme Court issued a unanimous decision in United States v. Hemani, a case in which unlawful drug use collided with the right to keep and bear arms. This rare showing of unity on such contentious issues was perhaps more surprising for its unlikely victor — not the federal government, but the marijuana-smoking gun owner whose criminal prosecution the court deemed an affront to the Second Amendment.
TL;DR
- The Supreme Court issued a unanimous decision in United States v. Hemani.
- The case involved a conflict between unlawful drug use and the right to keep and bear arms.
- The court ruled in favor of the marijuana-smoking gun owner, finding the prosecution an affront to the Second Amendment.
- The decision requires the government to carry a high burden of proof to disarm individuals.
- Commentators have misinterpreted the ruling as a broad victory for all recreational drug users, which is not the case.