Supreme Court Narrows Federal Law Barring Unlawful Drug Users From Owning Guns

The Supreme Court on Thursday unanimously held that a federal statute prohibiting firearm possession by anyone who uses or is addicted to a controlled substance violates the Second Amendment as applied to a Texas man whose only alleged violation was marijuana use.

The decision in United States v. Hemani addressed 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(3), which makes it unlawful for any person “who is an unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance” to possess a firearm.

The case involved Ali Danial Hemani, who was charged after federal agents found firearms at his residence during a search tied to a marijuana-related investigation. Hemani had no prior felony convictions and faced no allegations that he had used or carried a firearm while under the influence.

The Court’s per curiam opinion found that the lifetime prohibition triggered solely by unlawful drug use exceeded Congress’s authority under the Second Amendment.

The ruling comes after the Court’s 2022 decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen, which established a historical-tradition test for Second Amendment challenges and prompted multiple challenges to longstanding federal gun restrictions. The Hemani decision did not address other provisions of § 922(g), including prohibitions on felons and domestic-violence misdemeanants.

The statute at issue was also referenced in the 2024 prosecution of Hunter Biden, who was convicted in Delaware of violating § 922(g)(3) by purchasing a firearm while addicted to cocaine. Biden received a presidential pardon in December 2024. The Hemani litigation drew amicus support from the American Civil Liberties Union, the National Rifle Association, and the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.

Everytown for Gun Safety filed a brief opposing Hemani’s position.

” The decision leaves intact the remainder of the federal background-check system and other disqualifying categories under federal law.