The Biden administration was evidently concerned about potential legal liability in federal cases for people convicted of violating gun laws simply by being a cannabis consumer who possessed a firearm, documents obtained by Marijuana Moment show.
The previously unpublished 2024 guidance from former President Joe Biden’s Justice Department generally cautioned U.S. attorneys to use discretion in prosecuting federal cannabis cases, particularly for offenses that qualified people for pardons during his term. But one section seems especially relevant as the U.S. Supreme Court takes on a case challenging the constitutionality of the current federal gun statute.
Justices in that case recently granted a request from the Trump administration to extend the deadline to submit initial briefs until December 12.
The newly disclosed guidance from the Biden administration that was rescinded in September under Trump states that prosecutors “may pursue charges under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(3) or 18 U.S.C. § 922(d)(3) based on the unlawful use of, or addiction to, marijuana because the proclamation does not change the fact that marijuana use violates federal law,” referring to the statutes that make it a federal crime to possess a gun while being a cannabis consumer.
However, in order to “mitigate potential litigation risk,”
Read full article on Marijuana Moment
