The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals has once again thrown a wrench into the ATF’s overreach, striking down key flaws in the federal ban on firearms for unlawful drug users—a ruling that’s timed perfectly as the Supreme Court gears up to scrutinize the issue. In a sharp 9-7 decision, the panel in *United States v. Stone* reaffirmed its earlier skepticism from *United States v. Daniels*, holding that the government’s blanket prohibition under 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(3) fails the post-*Bruen* test. No longer can regulators hide behind historical tradition with vague nods to 18th-century drunken brawlers; the court demanded concrete analogs from the Founding era showing disarmament of non-violent drug users, and the feds came up empty-handed. This isn’t just legalese—it’s a direct challenge to the Biden administration’s gun-grab agenda, exposing how unlawful user status (think a single positive marijuana test, even in legal states) turns millions of otherwise law-abiding Americans into prohibited persons without due process.
Zooming out, this builds on *Bruen*’s revolution, forcing courts to ditch interest-balancing gymnastics for actual history. The implications for the 2A community are electric: if SCOTUS affirms or expands this in the pending *Garland v. Rahimi* shadow (or directly via cert on drug cases), we could see § 922(g)(3) crumble, liberating pot users, CBD enthusiasts, and anyone caught in the War on Drugs’ dragnet. Critics whine about public safety, but let’s be real—the data shows no spike in gun violence from armed users of substances that are increasingly decriminalized. This ruling arms advocates with ammo for challenges to red-flag laws and other as-applied disarmaments, reminding tyrants that the right to keep and bear arms isn’t contingent on a urine test. Stay tuned; the circuit split is widening, and the High Court can’t ignore it forever—2A winter is thawing.
For the pro-2A fighter on the ground, here’s the playbook: support groups like FPC and GOF pushing these cases, hit the polls to oust anti-gun judges, and stock up while supplies last. The Eighth Circuit just handed us a win; now let’s make it nationwide.
