Supreme Court poised to weigh legal battle over federal gun ban for drug users

Washington — The Supreme Court is set to hear arguments Monday in a Second Amendment dispute over a federal law that bars unlawful drug users from possessing firearms.

Washington — The Supreme Court is set to hear arguments Monday in a Second Amendment dispute over a federal law that bars unlawful drug users from possessing firearms.

The case, United States v. Hemani, is the second involving gun rights that the high court is hearing in its current term, joining a legal battle over a Hawaii law that restricts where concealed-carry license holders can bring their firearms. The Supreme Court heard arguments in that case in January and seemed skeptical about the constitutionality of the measure.

But the court fight is also the latest to land before the Supreme Court in the wake of its landmark 2022 decision that recognized the right to carry guns in public and laid out a new test for determining whether a firearms restriction violates the Second Amendment. Under that framework, the government must show that a gun law is consistent with the nation's historical tradition of firearm regulation.

The statute at issue was enacted by Congress in 1968 as part of the Gun Control Act and forbids an unlawful drug user from having a firearm. A violation of the law is a felony punishable by up to 15 years in prison. The Justice Department estimates roughly 300 people are charged with the offense each year. 

Perhaps the most high-profile offender was Hunter Biden, the son of former President Joe Biden who was found guilty in 2024 of possessing a gun while he was addicted to crack cocaine. He was pardoned before Biden's presidency ended last January.