Overview

• The justices granted the Justice Department’s appeal in United States v. Ali Danial Hemani, a Texas case that followed an FBI search finding a pistol alongside marijuana and cocaine.
• The 5th Circuit ruled the ban in 18 U.S.C. 922(g)(3) is unconstitutional unless the person was under the influence while armed, narrowing the statute’s application and triggering the appeal.
• Solicitor General D. John Sauer argues the law is a narrow, temporary restriction for habitual users and is consistent with historical limits on “habitual drunkards.”
• The government notes more than 30 states have similar laws and says the federal restriction underpins hundreds of prosecutions and many background-check denials each year.
• Arguments are expected next term with a decision likely by June 2026, as appeals courts remain divided on how Bruen’s history-and-tradition test applies to drug-use disqualifications.