The United States v. Loud Hawk et al., 1985, was a Supreme Court case that involved the prosecution of Kenneth Moses Loud Hawk and other Native American activists for possession of illegal firearms and explosives in 1975. The defendants argued that their Sixth Amendment right to a speedy trial had been violated due to the long delay between their initial arrest and eventual trial, which was caused by numerous appeals made by the government after several charges were dismissed by lower courts. However, the Supreme Court ruled against them in an 8-1 decision stating that while there had indeed been significant delays, these were justified given the complexity of legal issues involved in this case as well as considering national security concerns raised by it. Therefore, they concluded that no violation of constitutional rights occurred.

In the dissenting opinion for United States v. Loud Hawk, Justice Brennan argued that the majority had erred in its decision to allow prosecutors to re-indict defendants after a significant delay. He contended that this violated their Sixth Amendment right to a speedy trial and was an abuse of prosecutorial discretion. Brennan believed that the government's reasons for delaying prosecution were not compelling enough to justify such an extended delay, which he saw as prejudicial towards the defendants' ability to prepare their defense effectively due to fading memories and loss of evidence over time. Furthermore, he criticized the majority's reliance on factors like public interest or complexity of charges in determining whether delays are justified, arguing these considerations should be irrelevant when assessing potential infringement on constitutional rights.