In Busic v. United States, the Supreme Court addressed whether a defendant could be sentenced under both 18 U.S.C. § 924(c), which prescribes penalties for using or carrying a firearm during the commission of certain federal felonies, and another statute that provides an enhanced punishment for the same felony when committed with a dangerous weapon. The defendants were convicted of violating both statutes after they hijacked an airplane with firearms. The court held that Congress did not intend to authorize cumulative punishments under two separate statutes for one act of gun use in relation to one offense; hence, it was inappropriate to impose sentences under both laws simultaneously. Therefore, if conviction is made on multiple counts involving only one use of firearm during a crime, sentencing should be done only once rather than cumulatively.

In the dissenting opinion for BUSIC v. UNITED STATES, Justice Brennan argued that the majority's interpretation of 18 U.S.C. § 924(c) was incorrect and overly broad. He contended that Congress intended this statute to apply only in situations where a firearm was used or carried during an act of violence or drug trafficking crime, not any federal felony as interpreted by the majority. According to him, this broader interpretation could lead to absurd results such as applying enhanced penalties for non-violent crimes like tax evasion if a gun happened to be present at the scene but played no role in committing the offense itself. Furthermore, he believed that it would undermine other statutes designed specifically for violent felonies involving firearms use because they carry lesser penalties than Section 924(c). Thus, he concluded that Busic should not have been convicted under Section 924(c) since his underlying felony did not involve violence or drugs.