US Supreme Court to Revisit Law Barring Drug Users from Gun Ownership

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to review a federal law that prohibits illegal drug users from possessing firearms — a case that could redefine the balance between gun rights and substance laws under the Second Amendment.

The law, part of the landmark Gun Control Act of 1968, gained renewed attention after it was used to charge Hunter Biden, the son of U.S. President Joe Biden, in 2023.

The justices accepted the Justice Department’s appeal following a lower court ruling that struck down the law as unconstitutional. The case involves a Texas man, Ali Hemani, a dual American-Pakistani citizen, who was charged after authorities found a pistol, marijuana, and cocaine during a 2022 raid of his home in Denton County. Prosecutors did not allege he was under the influence at the time.

Hemani challenged the charge, arguing it violated his Second Amendment rights. In January, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals sided with him, ruling that “there is no historical justification for disarming a sober citizen not presently under an impairing influence.”

Zachary Newland, Hemani’s attorney, said while he was disappointed the Supreme Court took up the case, he remained confident that his client’s “fundamental constitutional rights” would ultimately be upheld.

The disputed statute was also at the center of Hunter Biden’s 2023 prosecution for lying about his drug use when purchasing a firearm in 2018. He was convicted in June 2024 but later received a presidential pardon from his father in December.

The Supreme Court is expected to hear arguments in the Hemani case and issue its ruling by June 2026.