A Maryland Judge Just Let the Glock Ban Keep Its January Clock
On Friday, September 26, Judge Richard D. Bennett of the District of Maryland orally denied the preliminary injunctions in Bathras v. Moore, No. 1:26-cv-02074-RDB, consolidated with Duffy v. Moore, No. 1:26-cv-02647-RDB. A written opinion is still coming. The statute is SB 334, Maryland’s ban on “machine gun convertible pistols” — Glocks and other cruciform-trigger handguns. Effective January 1, 2027. Plaintiffs include SAF, NRA, FPC, Maryland Shall Issue, Atlantic Guns, and Engage Armament. This is a PI denial. It is not a merits judgment.
- Oral PI denial Friday, Sept. 26, 2026: Judge Richard D. Bennett, D. Md. Bathras v. Moore, 1:26-cv-02074-RDB, consolidated with Duffy v. Moore, 1:26-cv-02647-RDB. Written opinion forthcoming.
- Target: SB 334 / Md. Crim. Law § 4-305.2, “machine gun convertible pistols” (cruciform-trigger Glock-style handguns). Effective Jan. 1, 2027.
- Plaintiffs named in the SAF reply: Bathras, Duffy, Atlantic Guns, Engage Armament, The Machine Gun Nest, NRA, FPC, SAF, Maryland Shall Issue. Defendant: Gov. Wes Moore et al.
- State’s own hearing testimony, quoted in the reply: law expected to hit ~20–25% of the pistol market. PI denial is not a merits ruling.
- Connecticut’s NSSF suit is a different statute and a different court. Maryland’s January clock remains unless a later order or appeal stays it.
Tom Knighton at Bearing Arms dated the report September 27, 2026. The hearing was Friday. The U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland “denied the plaintiffs’ motions for a preliminary injunction in Bathras v. Moore.” Judge Richard D. Bennett “issued the decision orally following arguments, with a written opinion and order expected to follow.” The captions on the Second Amendment Foundation’s September 22 consolidated reply: David J. Bathras, Sr., et al. v. Westley Moore, et al., Case No. 1:26-cv-02074-RDB, and Francis M. Duffy, Ph.D, et al. v. Westley Moore, et al., Case No. 1:26-cv-02647-RDB. Governor Wes Moore is the lead defendant. The reply is not the ruling. Friday’s oral denial is.
The law is Senate Bill 334. SAF’s reply calls it a Glock-style handgun ban: pistols with cruciform trigger bars that can be converted with an illegal switch. Maryland Criminal Law § 4-305.2(b) tells State Police to publish a list of prohibited “machine gun convertible pistols.” The state’s own legislative testimony, as quoted in that reply, put roughly 20 to 25 percent of the pistol market in the blast radius. Effective date named in the reply: January 1, 2027. Named plaintiffs on the two captions include Bathras, Duffy, dealers Atlantic Guns, Engage Armament, and The Machine Gun Nest, plus NRA, Firearms Policy Coalition, Second Amendment Foundation, and Maryland Shall Issue. Cooper & Kirk is on the Bathras brief. Counsel of record: Nicole J. Moss.
A preliminary injunction is the freeze. Bennett did not give it. The case is not over. The written opinion is not out. The January 1 clock is still the clock unless a later order or an appeal moves it. Connecticut’s NSSF suit is a separate filing against a separate felony that starts October 1. Maryland’s version now has a district judge on the record saying the law can take effect while the merits slog. That is a setback. It is not a final judgment on whether SB 334 survives Heller and Bruen.
"Bennett said no freeze. Maryland’s Glock-style ban still hits January 1. The case is not over. The calendar is."← More Stories
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