Guns and Cannabis are Hot Topics, Here's Where They Mix.

The City of Honolulu, Hawaii kicked up some dust in late 2017 when it required MMJ patients to surrender their guns.

Letters were sent to registered patients, "The letters, signed by Honolulu Police Chief Susan Ballard, inform patients that they have 30 days upon receipt of the letter to transfer ownership or turn in their firearms and ammunition to the Honolulu Police."

The basis of the action was a federal prohibition of gun ownership by users of controlled substances (cannabis remains on Schedule 1) "according to the Gun Control Act of 1968, “Anyone who is an unlawful user or addicted to any controlled substance” is banned from owning a firearm. Because marijuana is still federally illegal, anyone who uses cannabis – including medical patients – is barred from owning guns. Medical users must admit their marijuana use on Form 4473 or face perjury charges."

After an uproar, the Honolulu PD backed off its demand, "HPD won’t take guns from medical marijuana users"

For a detailed summary of the guns/cannabis issue, jump over to a deep dive by Johnny Green at Green Flower - excellent reporting here.

Here's a taste:

"The hypocrisy involved with the gun sale ban is obvious. A number of substances, while not being federally illegal, have been shown to directly increase the rate of violence in people that consume those substances. The most obvious one is alcohol.

Of the more than 11 million people who are the victims of a violent crime annually, almost one-fourth of them reported that the offender had been drinking prior to committing the crime. Yet someone could not only be an alcohol consumer and still purchase a gun, they also could have consumed alcohol right before the purchase, and the alcohol use would not prevent the sale.

Studies have shown that there's a greater rate of violence among cigarette smokers than there is among non-smokers, yet cigarette smokers are not prevented from purchasing guns (and rightfully so).

So why is cannabis being singled out?Just because cannabis is prohibited at the federal level does not mean that people should have to give up their 2nd Amendment right to purchase a gun."

image source: colorado pot guide