Dru Stevenson, Professor of Law

  U.S. Supreme Court Paper Title: United States v. Hemani: A Narrow Holding Full of Problems Author: Dru Stevenson (Vinson & Elkins Research Professor of Law, South Texas College of Law Houston) Repository Link: SSRN Abstract 7217658 Forthcoming In: Cato Supreme Court Review (2026) Abstract: In United States v. Hemani (2026), a unanimous Supreme Court held that 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(3) violates the Second Amendment when applied to regular marijuana users without proof of individual dangerousness. While purporting to issue a narrow holding, Hemani inflicts severe administrative and doctrinal damage. Critically, the Court completely ignored governing ATF narrowing regulations (27 C.F.R. § 478.11) and relied on outdated empirical data while creating operational chaos for the FBI’s NICS background check system. Beyond the majority opinion, concurrences reveal deeper structural rifts: Justice Thomas questioned Congress’s Commerce Clause authority over local gun possession, while...

Every year, tenure-track and tenured professors at my institution serve on a variety of faculty committees, which are an essential component of faculty governance for a law school. The committees have meetings (either in person or by Zoom), and the number of meetings depends on the workload of the committee, which varies considerably. At these meetings, academic policies are discussed, debated, and adopted by vote, after which they are committed to writing as formal policy proposals, which then go to the full faculty for a vote. Some committees, like those making tenure decisions, admissions, or financial aid, must vote on individual cases or candidates. My committee assignments for the coming year are administrative (general policies). I created a page on this blog with a table of all my previous committee assignments (past years): Public Service & Advisory Roles: Professor Dru Stevenson Professor Dru Stevenson: 2026–2027 Faculty Committee Assignments at South Texas College of Law...

As mentioned in a previous post, I have been undergoing treatment for colon cancer this summer. The good news is that the oncology team is optimistic and recommended I start a regimen of immunotherapy infusions every three weeks, which I will undergo for several months. Statistically, based on my test results, immunotherapy is 80-90% likely to eradicate all the cancer and make surgery unnecessary, but if it doesn't work, then I will have surgery to remove the tumor.   My anemia from the internal bleeding (tumor) overshadowed the entire month of June for me - many days I was too weak and groggy to function. It was a very unproductive month for me, though I was able to read several good books while resting. The two books I enjoyed the most in June were The End of Violence  by Gary Slutkin and The Fall of Egypt and the Rise of Rome: A History of the Ptolemies,  by Guy de la Bedoyere . Another book I read part of in June (but haven't finished) is Killing and Christian E...

Webinar Attendance: June 2, 2026 Today I attended the live webinar " Place Matters: How Neighborhoods Shape Patterns of Gun Violence ," hosted by the Regional Gun Violence Research Consortium at the Rockefeller Institute of Government . Core Tracking Data Event Source: Regional Gun Violence Research Consortium (Rockefeller Institute of Government) Panelists: Bryce Hruska (Syracuse University), Margaret Formica, and Jaclyn Schildkraut Focus Area: How the built environment and local infrastructure changes—specifically the ongoing I-81 Viaduct Project in Syracuse, New York—intersect with gun violence risks and prevention strategies. Participation: I participated in the live session, where the panelists addressed two policy and infrastructure questions I submitted during the Q&A. I asked how this research overlapped or differed from Jens Ludwig's "Unforgiving Places" model, which was focused on Chicago, not Syracuse. The panelists were unfamiliar with this...

I spent most of a week in the hospital in late May, where I was diagnosed with colon cancer (discovered during a colonoscopy and endoscopy). Severe anemia, from the slow internal bleeding, is what landed me in the hospital for an emergency blood transfusion. I have not been able to get an appointment with an oncologist yet, so I don't know what awaits me in the weeks and months ahead. I image a lot of the summer will be spent at the medical center getting tests, scans, transfusions, and hopefully a simple surgery, but I don't know the stage or treatment options yet. My red blood cell levels are slowly improving as I take iron supplements (also due to the blood transfusion and two intravenous iron infusions in the hospital). But it's still low enough that I have to spend my afternoons in bed, too weak and winded to do anything but rest. I would appreciate your prayers.

Reflecting on 22 Years of Academic Research at STCL Houston May 12, 2026 | Dru Stevenson I recently completed my annual faculty performance review at South Texas College of Law Houston . This marks my 22nd annual review since joining the faculty in 2004, which included a meeting with the Dean of the Law School and the Associate Dean of Faculty . Reflecting on over two decades of institutional support and legal scholarship at STCL Houston. I am grateful for the Dean's continued institutional support of my ongoing research into firearms law , Second Amendment jurisprudence , and nonviolent traditions . This long-standing partnership remains a vital component of my scholarly mission to bridge the gap between constitutional law and public health. This institutional support has enabled the cura...

Webinar Overview: Implementation Science in Practice On April 29, 2026, I attended the live webinar hosted by the Kaiser Permanente Center for Gun Violence Research and Education titled "It’s Not Just What You Do – It’s How You Do It: Implementation Science for Firearm Violence Prevention." The session featured experts from The Health Alliance for Violence Intervention (HAVI) and Lutheran Settlement House , including Lianne Fuino Estefan , Jessica Palardy , and Tom Simon as moderator. (Sydney Rolle-Stern was unable to join the webinar as planned). Sharing the live webinar presentation via LinkedIn to engage with the professional community on firearm violence prevention research. The discussion centered on implementation science —the study of methods to promote the systematic uptake of research findings into routine practice. The panelists examined why certain interventions succeed in controlled environments but face significant friction when scaled to diverse real-world s...