Last updated September 2026 · By Nick Hall, tracks state handgun bans and every Glock generation change for USA Gun Shop readers
Quick take: Glock has sued Connecticut to stop a law that makes it a felony for dealers to import or sell new “convertible pistols” starting October 1, 2026. The definition is built around the cross-shaped trigger bar inside every Glock, and a federal judge has set a hearing for September 29.
- What happened: On September 21, 2026, Glock, Inc. filed Glock, Inc. v. Griffin (case 3:26-cv-01525) in federal court in Connecticut, and NSSF, Shadow Systems and Blue Trail Range filed a second suit the same day.
- Why it matters: Public Act 26-41 makes it a class D felony for anyone to knowingly import, advertise or sell a covered pistol made on or after October 1, 2026.
- What’s next: Judge Kari A. Dooley will hear both injunction motions together on September 29 in Bridgeport, two days before the law takes effect.
- Who to watch: Chief State’s Attorney Patrick J. Griffin, whose office had not told Glock whether Gen6, V Series and Slimline Glocks are covered when the suit was filed.
Most state gun bans name the guns: a roster, a list of features, a magazine count. This one describes a part inside the gun and then asks whether somebody with a drill could make it worse. We pulled both complaints and the public act so you don’t have to. Here’s what’s actually in them, and what a Connecticut buyer can still take home after October 1.
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Table of Contents
What Public Act 26-41 Actually Bans
Connecticut’s law started life as Substitute House Bill 5043. Governor Ned Lamont signed it on May 26, 2026, and it became Public Act 26-41, with the pistol sections effective October 1, 2026.
The act defines a convertible pistol as any semiautomatic pistol with a cruciform trigger bar “that can be readily altered by hand or with a common household tool so that the pistol can be readily converted into a machine gun by the installation or attachment of a pistol converter.” A cruciform trigger bar is the cross-shaped part that links the trigger to the firing pin, and Glock’s complaint says every Glock pistol uses one. The statutory list of common household tools runs from a knife and a screwdriver to an electric drill and a rotary tool.
There are two exclusions. Hammer-fired semiautomatic pistols are out entirely. So is a cruciform pistol with “a tab or other piece of material molded to the pistol’s frame that shields the cruciform trigger bar from interference by a pistol converter, unless the tab or other piece of material can be readily removed from the pistol’s frame.”
Section 3 is the teeth. Anyone who knowingly imports a convertible pistol into Connecticut, or knowingly advertises, sells, offers or exposes one for sale, commits a class D felony if the gun was manufactured on or after October 1, 2026. Glock’s complaint puts that at up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine.
Notice what’s missing. The words “readily altered,” “readily converted” and “readily removed” carry the whole definition, and the act defines none of them.
What Glock Is Actually Asking For
Glock’s first request is not to kill the law. It wants a declaration that its Slimline pistols (the 42, 43, 43X and 48), its V Series and its Gen6 pistols are not convertible pistols at all. Only in the alternative does it argue the ban is void for vagueness under the Fourteenth Amendment, violates the Second Amendment and chills advertising protected by the First.
The Gen6 and V Series argument turns on what Glock calls the “triple block”: a hardened steel bracket in the rear frame rails, steel domes in the slide, and a redesigned slide cover plate. The complaint says the V Series versions of the Gen5 17, 19, 19X, 20, 21, 23, 26, 44 and 45 carry it, and the Glock 17 Gen 6 and the rest of the Gen6 line use the same design. Glock says an ATF Firearms Technology Industry Services Branch report dated July 8, 2025 found the triple block prevented the installation and function of all tested conversion devices.
Glock also says it stopped selling new Gen5 and earlier pistols to civilians on December 1, 2025, Slimline models excepted. That matters, because Glock’s civilian catalog is already built around the design it says fits Connecticut’s exclusion.
Glock tried to get an answer before suing. Its lawyers wrote to the Attorney General’s office on July 3, met with that office and two members of the State Police Special Licensing and Firearms Unit on August 27, and wrote to the Chief State’s Attorney on September 8 asking for a reply by September 14. The complaint says the State Police told Glock that dealers were calling to ask whether new Glocks would be banned, and that the unit did not know the answer.
The Attorney General’s office, according to the complaint, said it “cannot answer legal questions from private parties pursuant to our legal authority.” The vagueness claim writes itself from there. “Readily removed” could mean prying off the plastic tab on a Gen5 frame with a knife, or grinding a steel bracket out of a Gen6 frame with a rotary tool, and Glock says the second reading could sweep in its newest guns. It even argues the word “advertises” could reach a Connecticut dealer keeping Glock Buyer’s Guides on the counter.
The NSSF and Shadow Systems Suit Goes Bigger
The second case, National Shooting Sports Foundation v. Griffin (case 3:26-cv-01528), does not ask for carve-outs. NSSF, Texas pistol maker Shadow Systems and Wallingford retailer Blue Trail Range argue that banning new sales of cruciform-trigger handguns as a class violates the Second Amendment, full stop.
Shadow Systems, which builds Glock-pattern pistols like the MR920 in Plano, says it has sold more than $530,000 of cruciform-trigger handguns into Connecticut since 2021. It also says California’s 2025 law drove it out of that state entirely, at a cost of nearly $3.8 million in annual revenue. Its complaint states the stakes plainly: “After October 1, Connecticut retailers must remove all new cruciform-trigger handguns from their shelves or subject their principals to five years in prison.”
Lawrence G. Keane, NSSF’s Senior Vice President and General Counsel, said the law “punishes law-abiding citizens by infringing on their Second Amendment rights to legally obtain the firearms they choose to protect themselves and their families.” Attorney General William Tong answered the Glock filing the same day: “Connecticut’s commonsense gun laws are lawful and lifesaving. I will aggressively defend Connecticut against efforts to erode those commonsense laws.” His statement describes the law as one covering handguns “that can be readily converted into fully automatic machine guns.”
What a Connecticut Buyer Can Still Buy After October 1
Start with what the law does not touch. Section 3 covers importing, advertising and selling, not owning. A Glock already in your safe stays legal, with one catch: the amended definition of a machine gun now includes a convertible pistol held by someone who also possesses a pistol converter.
The ban only reaches pistols manufactured on or after October 1, 2026. A Gen5, Gen6 or V Series gun built before that date and sitting in a dealer’s case can still be sold. Hammer-fired pistols are excluded by name, and a striker gun that doesn’t use a cross-shaped trigger bar never meets the definition in the first place, which is one more reason the striker-fired vs hammer-fired question just got practical in Connecticut.
Private sales between two people who are not licensed dealers are exempt from Section 3. Everything else in Connecticut’s gun laws still applies to those transfers.
New Gen6, V Series and Slimline guns made after October 1 are the open question. Glock says they fall outside the definition, the state has not said, and Glock’s complaint predicts Connecticut dealers will be unlikely to keep buying new Glocks without written confirmation. If Judge Dooley grants the declaration Glock wants, new Gen6 guns keep reaching Connecticut counters. If she doesn’t, the realistic supply of new Glocks in the state becomes whatever was built before the first of the month.
What Happens Next in Bridgeport
Judge Kari A. Dooley ordered an evidentiary hearing on the preliminary injunction motions for September 29 at 9:30 in the morning in Bridgeport, and set the state’s response deadline for 5:00 p.m. on September 28. The NSSF case was transferred to her from Judge Alvin W. Thompson on September 22 so both motions could be heard together.
But the schedule is already contested. On September 25, the state’s lawyers asked for an extension until October 19 to respond to Glock’s motion, and Glock filed its opposition the same day. As of the Glock docket on September 25, the court had not ruled on the extension or on either injunction request.
A felony that turns on the word “readily.” Glock wants a judge to define it before a dealer has to guess.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a convertible pistol under Connecticut law?
Public Act 26-41 defines it as a semiautomatic pistol with a cruciform trigger bar that can be readily altered by hand or with a common household tool so it can be readily converted into a machine gun with a pistol converter. Hammer-fired pistols are excluded, and so are cruciform pistols with a molded frame tab that shields the trigger bar and cannot be readily removed.
When does Connecticut's convertible pistol ban take effect?
The pistol sections of Public Act 26-41 take effect October 1, 2026. The sales and import ban applies only to convertible pistols manufactured on or after that date.
Can I still own a Glock in Connecticut after October 1, 2026?
Yes. Section 3 of the act covers knowingly importing, advertising, selling, offering or exposing a covered pistol for sale. It does not ban owning one. The one catch is that a convertible pistol held by someone who also possesses a pistol converter now counts as a machine gun under Connecticut law.
Are Gen6 and V Series Glocks banned in Connecticut?
That is the question Glock has asked a federal judge to answer. Glock says the hardened steel bracket molded into the frame of Gen6 and V Series pistols fits the law's molded-tab exclusion, and that Slimline models cannot take known conversion devices. The state had not given Glock its position when the suit was filed.
Are hammer-fired pistols affected by the Connecticut law?
No. The definition of a convertible pistol expressly does not include any hammer-fired semiautomatic pistol. A striker-fired pistol without a cross-shaped cruciform trigger bar also falls outside the definition.
Can I buy a used Glock from a private seller in Connecticut after October 1?
The sales ban in Section 3 does not apply to a sale or transfer between two people who are not licensed gun dealers. Connecticut's other transfer rules still apply.
What is the penalty for selling a convertible pistol in Connecticut?
Knowingly importing, advertising or selling a convertible pistol made on or after October 1, 2026 is a class D felony. Glock's complaint describes that as punishable by up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $5,000.
Who is suing Connecticut over the convertible pistol law?
Glock, Inc. filed Glock, Inc. v. Griffin (3:26-cv-01525). The National Shooting Sports Foundation, Shadow Systems and Blue Trail Range filed a separate suit (3:26-cv-01528). Both were filed on September 21, 2026 in the US District Court for the District of Connecticut.
Related Reading
- Connecticut Gun Laws: Permits, Carry Rules and Restrictions
- Glock 19 Gen 6 Review: 1,200 Round Hands-On Test
- California Glock Ban Survives DOJ’s Injunction Bid
- Gun Groups Sue New York Over Its Glock Ban
- Shadow Systems MR920 Review: 800 Rounds Tested
- US Gun Laws by State: Comprehensive Legal Directory
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