California became the first state to enact medical marijuana legislation in 1996 with the Compassionate Use Act, followed in the next four years by Oregon, Alaska, Washington, Maine, Hawaii, Nevada and Colorado. Ultimately, this led to Colorado being the first state to legalize marijuana for recreational use in 2014. Since then, many states have shifted their status to fully legalized, medical use and decriminalized, medical use only, decriminalized, and a few states where the main psychoactive component of cannabis, THC, is allowed to be present only in trace amounts in conjunction with CBD products. As of 2024, only four states remain that completely outlaw marijuana use: Wyoming, Idaho, South Carolina and Kansas. Beginning on January 1, 2025, Kentucky will be the next state to legalize marijuana for medical use, however, throughout the years the federal government, despite its practice of selective prosecution, has remained firmly on the side of the cannabis remaining a controlled substance.

The disparity between state and federal stances on the subject creates a conflict, but only really where it is convenient for the government. Let me explain. Despite brick-and-mortar cannabis dispensaries having opened up across many states, we don’t see the DEA going through the phonebook raiding these businesses one after another. The truth is that the government doesn’t care if you get stoned and wipe out the local Pizza Hut inventory, as people who use cannabis products tend to be pretty “chill,” which the feds see as compliant and relatively harmless. In fact, there is talk about the federal government eventually moving to legalize marijuana as a whole, but hold on to your hats on that one, my friends, because we’re about to talk about the selective nature of the government and gain some understanding on why they have not pursued federal charges against marijuana businesses throughout the nation. 

Purchasing a firearm normally requires an ATF Form 4473 to be filled out, a process that Kentuckians are about to discover comes with some complications. Make no mistake, this is by design. Now that marijuana use has become so widespread in the U.S., the feds are doing a great job reminding states and gun owners that citizens must choose one or another, with a qualifying question on Form 4473 specifically addressing the matter. 

“Are you an unlawful user of, or addicted to, marijuana or any depressant, stimulant, narcotic drug, or any other controlled substance? Warning: The use or possession of marijuana remains unlawful under Federal law regardless of whether it has been legalized or decriminalized for medicinal or recreational purposes in the state where you reside.”

If you check yes in the box next to this question, a licensed dealer is prohibited from selling you a firearm under federal law. But that isn’t where the agenda ends, as federal law also prohibits current gun owners from maintaining their firearms if they possess a medical marijuana card or use the substance recreationally. 

“You cannot possess firearms and ammunition and also be a user of marijuana…They’re not expected to, but if they wish to follow federal law and not be in violation of it, then they need to make the decision to divest themselves of those firearms,” says ATF Special Agent AJ Gibes.

Violation of this federal law could subject American gun owners to prison time and a fine of up to $250,000, however, Gibes states that such charges are only likely to be pursued in connection with another felony being committed. 

“We are not actively seeking and working solely on investigations involving just the possession of firearms and marijuana because of our finite resources,” says Gibes.

Perhaps that’s true for now, but you better bet that lists are being made as I type this. Do you really trust anything .gov tells you after reading the plain text of the Second Amendment and seeing how they have trampled that with brazen disregard?

Kentuckians, like any Americans living in states with marijuana legalized in some form, will have to face a decision between marijuana use and their right to bear arms if they wish to follow the law, unlike some criminals in our legislative, judicial and enforcement communities who violate their oath to the Constitution with impunity on a daily basis. 

“I think the federal government, in the near future, needs to figure out how the Second Amendment and marijuana are going to coexist…Because it already is coexisting and it’s just going to be more prevalent in the near future” according to Ryan Crider, owner of Axolotl Arms in Louisville.