Maryland gun dealers have sold more firearms in the first nine months of this year than in all of 2011 and 2012 combined, say state police data reported by the Baltimore Sun. Buyers have applied to purchase 117,009 guns this year as lawmakers debated and enacted some of the nation’s toughest new gun laws. More than 15,000 gun purchase applications were sent to the state police in the 10 days before Maryland’s ban on assault rifle sales and a new handgun licensing requirement took effect Tuesday. “Maryland is armed to the teeth,” said Delegate Luiz Simmons, who voted for the law but argued that the assault rifle ban was not strong enough. “We caused this rush, this stampede really, to purchase guns.” State police could not say how many of the firearms purchased this year were handguns or assault rifles, but they have a backlog of more than 60,000 background checks to make sure the buyers are allowed to own those guns.