What the Supreme Court’s newest gun ruling means for Maryland

Licensed concealed-carry holders can now bring firearms into Maryland restaurants, stores, and other businesses open to the public — unless the property owner explicitly bans them — following a Supreme Court ruling issued Thursday.

What’s Happening: The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 in Wolford v. Lopez that state laws barring licensed concealed-carry holders from bringing firearms onto private property open to the public violate the Second and Fourteenth Amendments. The decision was issued June 25.

What’s Important: The ruling flips the default. Before the decision, firearms were prohibited in such spaces unless owners allowed them. Now, firearms are permitted unless owners take active steps to ban them.

How This Affects Real People: Maryland business owners who do not want firearms in their establishments must now post explicit notice or otherwise make that prohibition clear. Without that step, licensed concealed-carry holders may legally bring handguns inside.

The Ruling: Justice Samuel Alito wrote the majority opinion, holding that Hawaii’s law “hobbles what the Second Amendment protects: the right of Americans to carry arms for self-defense as they go about their daily lives.” The Court found the law unconstitutionally reversed the traditional common-law default, which presumes the public has an implied license to enter commercial properties. Justices Elena Kagan, Ketanji Brown Jackson, and Sonia Sotomayor dissented.

The Case: The decision struck down a provision of Hawaii’s 2023 gun law, known as Act 52, which made it a crime for licensed concealed-carry holders to bring firearms into businesses like restaurants, grocery stores, and gas stations unless the owner explicitly posted permission. Critics called the provision a “vampire rule” — the idea that a firearm needed an invitation to enter, like a vampire. The Court applied the legal framework from New York State Rifle & Pistol Association, Inc. v. Bruen, a 2022 decision that requires gun laws to be grounded in the historical tradition of firearm regulation in early America. Several other states had adopted similar laws, giving the ruling immediate national reach.

Maryland’s Response: Attorney General Anthony G. Brown issued a statement disagreeing with the ruling. “While the Second Amendment affords Marylanders the right to bear arms, that right has never meant guns must be allowed everywhere, regardless of the wishes of business owners or their communities,” Brown said. “But today’s ruling allows firearms into the restaurants, stores, and public spaces Marylanders visit every day unless owners take steps to keep the guns out.” Brown said keeping Marylanders safe remains his office’s top priority.