Overview
- A federal judge issued a preliminary injunction on Thursday that bars Montgomery County from enforcing its ban on firearms inside the Silver Spring Jewish Center while the litigation continues.
- The court found the synagogue and its rabbi likely to prevail on as‑applied Second Amendment and Free Exercise claims, saying historical analogues did not support a sweeping indoor ban.
- The relief is limited to the Silver Spring Jewish Center and its members and does not lift the county’s separate rule that bars guns within 100 yards of designated places of public assembly.
- Plaintiffs, represented by the New Civil Liberties Alliance, argued the synagogue relies on a trained, armed team of volunteer congregants for religious and cost reasons and said hired guards are unaffordable or less acceptable under their faith.
- The decision comes after Montgomery County adopted Expedited Bill 23‑26 on July 27 to broadly restrict guns at sensitive sites and after federal officials warned the law could leave worshippers unable to defend themselves, and the case may shape how courts apply Bruen‑era tests to religious security practices.