Story perspectives

SCOTUS Overturns Gun Ban on Marijuana Users, ACLU-NRA Alliance Wins

6/18/2026

Summary

Story summary

The U.S. Supreme Court struck down the ban on firearms for marijuana users in case of Ali Danial Hemani.
American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and National Rifle Association (NRA) backed the ruling, an alliance.
Justice Neil Gorsuch said “drunkard” statutes do not apply to marijuana users.
Justice Clarence Thomas, Justice Samuel Alito (with Justice Elena Kagan), Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, Justice Sonia Sotomayor concurred as it tolerates marijuana in 24 states.

History

Historical Context

The federal ban on cannabis began with the 1970 Controlled Substances Act, which classified marijuana as Schedule I. The Supreme Court affirmed Congress’s Commerce-Clause power in Gonzales v. Raich (2005), a 6-3 ruling authored by Justice Stevens, and later limited the Attorney General’s reach in Gonzales v. Oregon (2006). These decisions anchor today’s debates over state-level drug protections.

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Story summary

The U.S. Supreme Court struck down the ban on firearms for marijuana users in case of Ali Danial Hemani.
American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and National Rifle Association (NRA) backed the ruling, an alliance.
Justice Neil Gorsuch said “drunkard” statutes do not apply to marijuana users.
Justice Clarence Thomas, Justice Samuel Alito (with Justice Elena Kagan), Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, Justice Sonia Sotomayor concurred as it tolerates marijuana in 24 states.

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