Federal Judge Blocks Connecticut Ban on Glock Pistols
Judge Kari A. Dooley blocked a Connecticut law banning Glock-style pistols hours before it took effect, ruling the restriction is presumptively unconstitutional.
A federal judge blocked a Connecticut law banning the sale of Glock-style pistols on October 1, 2026, just hours before the restrictions were scheduled to begin. The law, signed by Governor Ned Lamont in May, targeted handguns that could be converted to fully automatic fire using illegal Glock switches.
Kari A. Dooley, a judge for the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut, issued the preliminary injunction after a lawsuit from gunmaker Glock and the National Shooting Sports Foundation. Judge Dooley ruled the statute is presumptively unconstitutional and failed to meet historical regulation standards established by the 2022 Bruen decision. She noted that the state offered no adequate explanation for why a firearm manufactured one day would be legal while the same model manufactured 24 hours later would be restricted.
Connecticut Attorney General William Tong stated the state will continue to defend the law, while state Senators Martin Looney and Bob Duff described the judge's interpretation of the Second Amendment as tortured. Lawrence G. Keane of the National Shooting Sports Foundation praised the ruling as a protection of fundamental rights.
The decision immediately impacted other legal battles. The United States Department of Justice filed a notice in a California federal court to strengthen its challenge against California's Unsafe Handgun Act, citing the Connecticut ruling as precedent. In response, California Attorney General Rob Bonta notified the court that the state approved the Glock 43X CA for sale, a move legal observers suggest may be an attempt to moot the federal litigation.
