Concealed Carry and Marijuana Use

Marijuana and Guns
Concealed Carry and Marijuana Use
Colorado Second Amendment Association
Colorado Second Amendment Association

Colorado –-(Ammoland.com)- As you know, Colorado has recently legalized the purchase and possession of marijuana for recreational use.

For many years, Colorado has had legal medical marijuana for those who provided an MMJ card verifying that they had a prescription from a doctor. Those who did procure that MMJ card were reminded by the ATF that they were no longer allowed to purchase or possess firearms.

Furthermore, some counties in Colorado added a question to their concealed carry application asking applicants specifically about their use of marijuana. Having a valid MMJ card would prevent someone from obtaining a CHL, because their status as an MMJ card holder was easily verifiable.

Now there is a group in Colorado, the Colorado Campaign for Equal Gun Rights that is putting forth a ballot initiative that would remove the ban on CHL permits for Marijuana users. They would need 86,000 signatures to send the question to voters and are working toward having this added to the November 2016 ballot.

marijuana
Concealed Carry and Marijuana Use

When considering this, is there a difference between a gun owner that enjoys alcohol vs a gun owner that enjoys marijuana? After all, being intoxicated while carrying a firearm is already illegal, regardless of intoxicant and this repeal would not make it legal to be intoxicated and carry a firearm. It would simply allow users of marijuana to legally carry a firearm, just as users of alcohol can carry a firearm.

Here is the proposed text of the ballot initiative that can be found at: https://coequalgunrights.org/about/proposed-text/

SECTION 1. In Colorado Revised Statutes, 18-12-203, amend (1) (c) and (1) (f) as follows:

18-12-203. Criteria for obtaining a permit. (1) Beginning May 17, 2003, except as otherwise provided in this section, a sheriff shall issue a permit to carry a concealed handgun to an applicant who:

(c) Is not ineligible to possess a firearm pursuant to section 18-12-108; or federal law;

(f) Is not an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance as defined in section 18-18-102 (5), EXCEPT THAT A SHERIFF SHALL NOT USE A PERMIT APPLICANT’S LAWFUL USE OF MARIJUANA PURSUANT TO SECTION 14 OR 16 OF ARTICLE XVIII OF THE STATE CONSTITUTION AS A BASIS FOR DENYING THE APPLICANT A PERMIT. Whether an applicant is an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance shall be determined as provided in federal STATE law and regulations.

What are your thoughts on this? If this came up on the November 2016 ballot, how would you vote?

For more perspective on this, here is a Washington Times article from December: https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/dec/12/colo-gun-group-concealed-carry-marijuana-users/

About Colorado Second Amendment Association
The Colorado Second Amendment Association (C2AA) is a Colorado-focused Second Amendment rights group. Please visit us at www.colorado2a.org

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Eric

Well in Anchorage Alaska we are having alot of drug related shootings mainly for the sole purpose of robbery. Today a 14 year old drug dealer killed an 18 year old during a drug deal. Over 6 home invasions have occurred in the past 12 months , where a group is targeting pot sellers home to rob them. So all this hype how legalizing pot is going to change things is not being seen by me. All I see is this pattern escalating like it has for the last 2 years. The number of vehicle breakins and small thefts have… Read more »

Joe

I can almost garentee you these people did not do these things because of Marijuana. Most people today know there is a distinct differsnce between someone who smokes marijuana and other types of drug users. Marijuana does not cause the type of dependency that say heroin causes.

Terry

l’ll take a pot head over a drunk anyday.

askeptic

As long as it is a Federally Prohibited substance, you can have all the local docs you want, you still will be prohibited under the terms of GCA-68 (as amended) from purchasing a weapon, and that can also put you into jeopardy at state levels as a Prohibited Person.
To get THC off the Prohibition List at the Federal level will require Congress to order, and fund, the FDA to conduct a Safety and Efficacy Study on THC Usage, and the President to sign such legislation, or repeal GCA-68 (as amended).

sage419

It will be interesting to see this play out, if for no other reason to see these cases reach the courts. How will the .gov justify militantly enforcing laws that infringe on a right to bear arms, while consciously ignoring local and state laws that oppose federal law? I’d love to see the DOJ taken to task for selectively enforcing laws and regulations merely because of political expediency.

RDNK

I’ve never understood how ‘mans law’ can make a plant and its use illegal ! Its been proven time and time again the medicinal values of THC (doctors around the country would prescribe it for a host of maladies if able) ! As far as its recreational use its sure alot better than alcohol. THC is not physically addictive and has none negative effects of alcohol. Sell it,tax it,enjoy it !

Jon

“mans law”

Where do you live? I prefer man’s law based on our God given rights of self governance. He has given us that right and as majority we have chosen certain thing to be wrong. In no way does outlawing Marijuana violate any law set forth by God. So please keep God’s law and man law separate. I personally do not want the live in a ISIS world were you have to follow someone’s else’s view of God’s law or loose your head!!!!

Chris Mallory

Your anti-pot laws violate God’s law given in Gen 1:29 ” And God said, Behold, I have given you every herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, and every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.”

Or did God not mean what He said?

Lava

I wonder how to come up with a list of behaviors that indicate impairment, a “blood marijuana content” to distinguish one who’s impaired from one who is not, and a test for impairment. Would we use a breath test? How many joints could a person take before they cannot operate a vehicle? It’s complicated with alcohol, it would be more so with cannabis.

Michael Revercomb

The utilization of one right (liberty and sovereign control over one’s own body and what they put into it) should not restrict their ability to practice another right (like the second amendment). To ban cannabis users from having the same gun rights as all citizens is no different than telling a person they have no second amendment rights because they drank a beer. When you ask the government to restrict other citizens you are setting the very precedent by which the government will do it to you later. Cannabis users should be afforded the same equal rights as everyone else.… Read more »

Eric

You got to love it when a “Sovereign” jumps into the debate. Stupidity just flows!!!!

Ned

You got to love it when ad hominem jumps into the debate. No factually addressing a comment – just allegations of stupidity.

Nicks87

Could you please explain? I’m not sure what it was about the comment that implied stupidity or what led you to believe the person was involved in a Sovereign citizen group.

Chris Mallory

What title do you use? “Serf” comes to mind as one that would fit.