The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously ruled that the federal government may not automatically bar a person from possessing firearms solely because the person uses marijuana, holding that the prohibition in 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(3) is unconstitutional as applied without a showing that the individual’s drug use makes them dangerous. Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote the opinion in United States v. Hemani.
The decision, issued June 18, limits how the federal ban on gun possession by “unlawful user[s] of or addicted to any controlled substance” can be applied to people who use marijuana. The court rejected the government’s position that the statute categorically disarms anyone deemed an “unlawful user,” regardless of the type or amount of drug use, or whether the person has shown any signs of violence or other dangerous behavior.
Ali Danial Hemani, a Texas man, was prosecuted under the statute after he told investigators he used marijuana frequently and kept a firearm in his home. The Supreme Court held that applying the law to him—without evidence that his drug use made him dangerous—violated the Second Amendment.
The ruling continues the court’s recent Second Amendment trajectory after its 2022 decision in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen, which requires gun regulations to be consistent with the nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation. In Hemani, the justices emphasized that “drugs and guns can sometimes make for a dangerous mix,” but said that risk alone does not permit the government to presume that all marijuana users are violent or dangerous.
The opinion leaves open how § 922(g)(3) may be applied in other circumstances, including cases involving different substances or stronger evidence of dangerous conduct. It also does not change the fact that marijuana remains illegal under federal law, even where states permit medical or recreational use.
