A Rockville judge signaled at an Aug. 13 hearing that Montgomery County may not be able to walk away from the state-court fight over its firearms law, even after the County Council rewrote the statute this summer.

Associate Circuit Court Judge Ronald Rubin did not rule on the county's motion to dismiss Engage Armament LLC v. Montgomery County but his comments suggested the effort may not succeed.

"I don't know that the Circuit Court has any ability one way or the other, other than to obey what the Supreme Court told us to do," Rubin said, according to Bethesda Magazine.

The case matters in Potomac because the county's gun law still bars firearms within 100 yards of parks, schools, libraries, houses of worship and recreational facilities scattered across the community.

What the county argued

County attorney Jeffrey Schwaber told Rubin that the Council's June 21 amendment removed every provision the Maryland Supreme Court found objectionable in its April 28 ruling. That amendment, which passed 10-1 and was signed by County Executive Marc Elrich on July 27, stripped hospitals, community health centers, long-term care facilities and childcare facilities from the law's definition of "place of public assembly." It also exempted state wear-and-carry permit holders traveling on public highways.

Schwaber argued the Council had already done the court's work for it, making further judicial action unnecessary.

Why plaintiffs say the case isn't over

Mark Pennak, attorney for the plaintiffs and president of the gun-rights group Maryland Shall Issue, countered that the county is trying to dodge attorney's fees and other relief the Supreme Court's mandate requires. Even entertaining the dismissal motion violates the high court's instructions to the Circuit Court, Pennak argued.

Schwaber denied the motion was about fees, saying those should be resolved later once all appeals are exhausted.

The state case is one of at least four active challenges to the county's firearms restrictions. Three federal lawsuits have been filed in Maryland's district court, including one by the U.S. Department of Justice on Aug. 3 that argues the 100-yard exclusion zone violates the Second Amendment. As we reported Aug. 4, the DOJ suit targets the same parks-and-schools buffer zone that applies throughout Potomac.

The original Engage Armament lawsuit, filed in May 2021 by the Rockville-based gun store, initially challenged the county's ghost gun ban. A second county law restricting firearms near places of public assembly was added to the case after it passed in November 2022.

What's next

Rubin said he needed more time to read through the attorneys' filings before ruling. No follow-up hearing date was announced. Councilmember Dawn Luedtke, who sponsored the June amendment, said at a July 27 press conference that she hoped the changes would show the court that corrective action had been taken.

That argument did not appear to land.