The United States Supreme Court has agreed to review the federal law that bars illegal drug users from owning firearms — a statute famously used to charge Hunter Biden, son of President Joe Biden, in 2023.
The court announced the decision on Monday, October 20, 2025, taking up the Justice Department’s appeal to defend the law after a lower court in Texas ruled that it violated the Second Amendment right to “keep and bear arms.”
The challenge was brought by Ali Hemani, a dual American-Pakistani citizen and self-admitted marijuana user. Federal agents discovered a pistol, marijuana, and cocaine at his Texas home during a 2022 raid, though there was no claim he was intoxicated at the time.
“There is no historical justification for disarming a sober citizen not presently under an impairing influence,” ruled the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in January, dismissing Hemani’s gun charge.
The Legal and Political Weight of the Case
The Justice Department, however, insists the 1968 law — part of the landmark Gun Control Act — remains vital to public safety and aligns with long-standing restrictions on firearm possession by certain groups.
Hemani’s lawyer, Zachary Newland, said he was disappointed but remained confident that his client’s “fundamental constitutional rights will be vindicated.”
The case echoes the legal storm surrounding Hunter Biden, who was accused of lying about drug use to buy a firearm in 2018. He was convicted in June 2024, only to receive a presidential pardon six months later.
The Supreme Court’s eventual ruling, expected by June 2026, could reshape the balance between gun rights and drug policy in the United States — and reopen old debates about whether the government should restrict firearms based on private conduct.
If the court strikes down the law, would that pave the way for more access to guns for other restricted groups? Or would it in your view trigger another move by Congress to rewrite the nation’s gun laws?
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