Decided Jun 18, 2026, 9-0 Updated 118 days ago
Where it stands
Challenge to the federal prohibition on firearm possession by unlawful drug users (18 U.S.C. 922(g)(3)). Decided 9-0 for the defendant, opinion by Justice Gorsuch.
The legal question
Can Congress make it a crime for someone who regularly uses marijuana to possess a firearm under 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(3)?
The ruling
The Court affirmed the Fifth Circuit and ruled for Ali Hemani. Justice Gorsuch wrote the majority opinion, joined by Chief Justice Roberts and Justices Thomas, Sotomayor, Kavanaugh, Barrett and Jackson. Justices Thomas and Jackson (joined by Sotomayor) wrote concurrences, and Justice Alito, joined by Justice Kagan, concurred in the judgment. The Court called its decision narrow.
In legal terms
Ali Hemani was investigated over suspected terrorism-related activity. He cooperated, surrendered a gun kept in his home, and said he used marijuana about every other day. He was charged under 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(3), which bars an "unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance" from possessing firearms. The district court dismissed the indictment on Second Amendment grounds and the Fifth Circuit affirmed, holding the statute unconstitutional as applied to him.
Under Bruen, the government conceded that the statute burdens conduct the Second Amendment presumptively protects, so the question was whether the law fits the nation's historical tradition. The government pointed to old "habitual drunkard" laws as the closest analogue. The Court rejected that analogy for three reasons: those laws reached people whose drinking left them unable to manage their affairs, not regular users; they were aimed mainly at protecting the drinker, the family and the community rather than disarming dangerous people; and they came with a process before disarmament, while 922(g)(3) applies automatically once someone is an unlawful user. The Court also noted that marijuana was moved from Schedule I to Schedule III after oral argument.
What this means, in plain English
Federal law says you cannot own a gun if you are "an unlawful user" of a controlled substance. Marijuana is still illegal federally, so millions of people in states where it is legal were technically barred from owning guns. The government argued it could prosecute someone for using marijuana a few times a week.
The Supreme Court said no, at least for a regular marijuana user like Hemani. It compared the law to old laws about "habitual drunkards" and found the two were not close enough. The vote was 9 to 0 for Hemani.
The ruling is narrow. It does not say that anyone can possess a gun while using drugs, and it leaves open how the law applies to heavy users, people who are impaired, or people using other drugs. Do not treat it as a green light. If you use marijuana and own guns, talk to a lawyer about your own situation.
People charged under 922(g)(3) on the theory that regular marijuana use alone strips gun rights are protected from that theory. The Court did not address disarming addicts, people who are intoxicated, or individuals shown to be dangerous, and did not touch the felon ban, so lower courts will keep sorting out the edges case by case.
Timeline
Key terms
- Bruen (2022)
- The Supreme Court case that struck down New York's rule requiring a special reason to get a carry permit. It set the test courts use today: if the Second Amendment's text covers what you did, the government must show its law fits the country's historical tradition of firearm regulation.
- Facial vs. as-applied
- A facial challenge says a law is unconstitutional in every case. An as-applied challenge says it is unconstitutional only for this person in these facts.
- Circuit
- The U.S. has 13 federal appeals courts. Twelve are regional (the 1st through 11th Circuits and the D.C. Circuit) and cover specific states. Their rulings bind the states in their region.
Related
Sources: court dockets, the Federal Register, DOJ releases and Congress.gov. Informational only, not legal advice. Items marked Unverified are awaiting review.