The Bruen effect continues as the 30-day waiting period for a gun license in Maryland is found to be unconstitutional in a U.S. Court of Appeals.

According to an article by CNN, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit ruled that Maryland’s preliminary handgun licensure requirement is unconstitutional and cannot be enforced. In this decision, a section from the Maryland Firearm Safety Act of 2013 was found to not pass the Bruen test – a test that was established by a Supreme Court decision in 2022, requiring gun laws to be consistent with the Nation’s historical tradition of firearm regulation. Of four requirements outlined in the Firearm Safety Act, the 30-day waiting period was the primary element to fail the test.

In a Washington Post article, political leadership across Maryland expressed frustration and a commitment to consider an appeal and potential legislative avenues to reinstate some provisions. But, according to Democratic leadership, the effort will not be without its challenges:

“We’ll have to look at this and subsequent decisions in the months ahead — we’re in uncharted waters,” said state Sen. William C. Smith Jr. (D-Montgomery), chairman of the Judicial Proceedings Committee, whose panel has jurisdiction over Maryland gun laws.

Many states have been experiencing similar situations in the last year since the Bruen ruling in 2022. After the Bruen decision at least 450 lower court cases concerning the Second Amendment have analyzed the law, more than double the number from Heller, a previous impactful Second Amendment decision in 2008. The 2024 legislative session could see the vetting of a new approach to gun laws in Maryland.