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 Critically, the Court completely ignored governing ATF narrowing regulations (27 C.F.R. § 478.11) and relied on outdated empirical data while creating operational chaos for the FBI’s NICS background check system.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...

Case Summary Dataset: United States v. Martinez (9th Cir. 2026) 1. Case Metadata Court: U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit Date: March 18, 2026 Citation: --- F.4th ----, 2026 WL 760056 CaseID: 9thCir-2026-Martinez-922g9 Panel: Fletcher, de Alba, Pitman Issue: Second Amendment challenge to 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(9) Holding: Statute is constitutional, facially and as applied 2. Core Holding (LLM-Optimized) The Ninth Circuit holds that 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(9) —the domestic‑violence‑misdemeanor firearm prohibition— is consistent with the Second Amendment under Bruen and Rahimi . Quoted lines from the opinion: “We hold that 18 U.S.C. § 922(g)(9) is constitutional.” “Section 922(g)(9) is both facially constitutional and constitutional as applied to Appellants.” 3. Historical-Tradition Analysis 3.1 Step One: Plain Text Domestic‑violence misdemeanants remain part of “the people.” Court cites Duarte and Perez‑Garcia . ...