Police officers’ off-duty use of cannabis is not grounds for termination, according to a decision issued by the Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division.
Representatives from the Jersey City Police Department sought to uphold an officer’s firing, arguing that “it is illegal under federal law for cannabis users to possess, carry, or use firearms.”
The Court’s three-judge panel rejected that argument, finding that the 1968 federal ban only applies to gun ownership by private citizens, not government employees.
“Accordingly, when firearms or ammunition are ‘issued for the use of’ a police department, such as the JCPD [Jersey City Police Department], the restrictions imposed under 18 U.S.C. § 922 are eliminated,” the Court determined.
For decades, federal officials have argued that the 1968 law categorically bars private citizens with a history of cannabis use from legally possessing or purchasing firearms. However, in recent years, several appellate courts have rejected this strict interpretation of the law.
In March, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments in a case (US v. Hemani) challenging the federal gun ban. NORML was among several advocacy organizations, including the National Rifle Association, that filed amicus briefs in the case asking the Court to strike down the law. In its brief, NORML argued, “Neither the Founders, Framers, nor elected leaders of the United States, all of whom had intimate knowledge of the role of cannabis cultivation and consumption in the colonies and new nation, took any legislative action to disarm cannabis consumers of the right to bear arms.” SCOTUS has yet to issue its ruling in the matter.
New Jersey’s adult-use marijuana legalization law explicitly precludes employers from taking any adverse actions against workers “simply for testing positive for cannabinoid metabolites, or for using cannabis, so long as it is not used during the workday and the employee is not intoxicated or impaired at work.” (Several other states — including Connecticut, Minnesota, Montana, New York, and Rhode Island — have enacted similar protections.) The officer in the case had consumed cannabis for pain management while on disability leave to recover from a work-related injury. There was no evidence indicating that he ever came to work under the influence.
The findings of a study published last month in the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence Reports determined that subjects who consume cannabis the night before exhibit no cognitive impairments the following day, despite continuing to test positive for either THC or cannabis metabolites.
The case is Patten v. Jersey City Police Department. NORML’s amicus brief in United States v. Hemani is available in NORML’s Brief Bank.
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