Maryland Court Kills Gun Stop-and-Frisk

Maryland's appellate court ruled that cops can't stop and frisk someone just because they're carrying a gun.

State of play: Steven Hicks was stopped in Baltimore in 2023 after a detective spotted a handgun printing through his shirt. Hicks told officers repeatedly — before and during the search — that he had a carry license. Police searched him anyway, found cocaine, and he ended up with a five-year sentence.

Catch up quick:

• Before Bruen (2022), Maryland was "may-issue" — courts treated handgun possession as presumptively illegal, so visible printing was enough for a stop
• Bruen flipped that: public carry is now presumptively legal nationwide
• Maryland went "shall-issue" in October 2023, while Hicks' appeal was still pending

The Appellate Court of Maryland sided with Hicks, holding that Baltimore police violated his Fourth Amendment rights by relying solely on suspicion of firearm possession. The court also found the search went beyond what a lawful Terry frisk permits — the detective reached into Hicks' satchel and dug through his pockets, well past the outer-clothing pat-down Terry allows.

"Keeping and bearing arms is presumptively lawful nationwide" — meaning cops can't suspect someone of a crime solely because they have a firearm. — 5th Circuit, U.S. v. Wilson (2025), cited by the Maryland court

The intrigue: The government tried to argue that the presumption of legality depended on each state's own gun laws, not Bruen. The court rejected that cleanly, citing both Wilson and U.S. v. Daniels (2025), in which the 5th Circuit held officers can't "look with suspicion on citizens presumably lawfully exercising their Second Amendment rights."

Yes, but: The ruling isn't a clean sweep. The appellate court itself noted the Bruen standard is "arguably" not a "positive change," suggesting it could limit officers' ability to intervene before violence occurs. Baltimore's State's Attorney acknowledged officers will now need "additional facts indicating criminal activity beyond mere possession" before making a stop — and the department is already retraining accordingly.

What gun owners should know: If you carry legally in Maryland, this ruling means a visible imprint or a bulge under your shirt is no longer grounds for police to stop and search you. The scope of Terry frisks is also back in its lane: outer clothing only, not satchels, not pockets. The ruling doesn't protect you from stops based on other articulable suspicious behavior — just possession alone.

What to watch: Whether Baltimore's retraining holds, whether the state seeks further review, and whether other Maryland jurisdictions adopt or resist the new standard. The 5th Circuit precedents cited here are persuasive, not binding — but they reflect a clear post-Bruen trend that's hard to argue around.

The bottom line: Lawful carry means lawful carry. A court finally said so in Maryland.