Pubdate: Thu, 01 Sep 2016
Source: Orange County Register, The (CA)
Copyright: 2016 The Associated Press
Contact:  http://www.ocregister.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/321
Author: Sudhin Thanawala, The Associated Press

U.S. COURT UPHOLDS BAN ON GUN SALES TO HOLDERS OF MEDICAL MARIJUANA CARDS

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - A federal ban on the sale of guns to medical 
marijuana card holders does not violate the Second Amendment, a 
federal appeals court said Wednesday.

The ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals applies to the 
nine Western states under the court's jurisdiction, including 
California and Washington.

It came in a lawsuit filed by S. Rowan Wilson, a Nevada woman who 
said she tried to buy a firearm for self-defense in 2011 after 
obtaining a medical marijuana card. The gun store refused, citing the 
federal rule banning the sale of firearms to users of illegal drugs.

Marijuana use remains illegal under federal law.

She challenged guidance issued by the federal Bureau of Alcohol, 
Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in 2011 that said gun sellers should 
assume people with medical marijuana cards use the drug and not sell 
them firearms.

The 9th Circuit in its 3-0 decision said it was reasonable for 
federal regulators to assume a medical marijuana card holder was more 
likely to use the drug.

The court also said Congress had reasonably concluded that marijuana 
and other drug use "raises the risk of irrational or unpredictable 
behavior with which gun use should not be associated."

The 9th Circuit also rejected other constitutional challenges to the 
ban raised by Wilson, including her argument that her gun rights were 
being stripped without due process.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom