WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Supreme Court held an impromptu conference to consider relisted petitions the day before it handed down the last cases of the term. The Court had 30 petitions and applications before it at the conference, with ten identified as new relists.

Key cases concerning Second Amendment rights and criminal appeal waivers were on the agenda. The Court recently ruled in United States v. Hemani, holding that prohibiting a marijuana user from possessing firearms violated the Second Amendment. Following this decision, the Court released holds on several gun cases that had been pending the outcome. These cases included National Rifle Association v. Glass, McCoy v. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, West Virginia Citizens Defense League, Inc. v. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, Bivens v. Second Amendment Foundation, and Picon v. United States.

The Court considered these relisted gun cases at the June 25 conference. National Rifle Association v. Glass (24-1185) asks whether Florida's law banning 18-to-20-year-olds from purchasing firearms violates the Second Amendment. This case was relisted after the conference. McCoy v. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives (25-24) asks whether federal laws banning 18- to 20-year-olds from purchasing handguns from federally licensed firearm dealers violate the Second Amendment. This case also asks whether the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit erred by finding that the district court's certification of a nationwide class action pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. was appropriate.

In addition to Second Amendment matters, the Supreme Court decided Hunter v. United States, holding that agreements criminal defendants make with the government not to appeal sentences are unenforceable when they would result in a "miscarriage of justice." Following this ruling, the Court issued grants, vacates, and remands (GVRs) for numerous petitions for further consideration in light of the decision. The Court retained two cases, both captioned Jones v. United States, for further consideration regarding appeal waivers.

Why It Matters

The conference allowed the Supreme Court to address a backlog of cases, including those affected by recent decisions. The consideration of relisted petitions in Second Amendment cases and criminal appeal waivers followed the rulings in United States v. Hemani and Hunter v. United States. The Court's actions applied precedents regarding firearms and the rights of criminal defendants across various jurisdictions.