The state of New Jersey is already suing Glock and seeking to stop the sale of the popular pistols throughout the state. Now Attorney General Matthew Platkin has filed a separate lawsuit that, if successful, would put an end to the sale of Sig's P320 handguns as well.
The P320 has come under fire (no pun intended) from several individuals who claim the gun has discharged without them pulling the trigger, and earlier this month a federal judge in Illinois ordered the Chicago Police Department to stop using the pistol as a duty weapon. The Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission has also banned the handgun in its training academies, which led to a lawsuit from Sig arguing that the ban has caused the company harm to its reputation and bottom line by forcing departments across the state to adopt other firearms for their officers.
As we reported earlier this month:
When it filed its lawsuit against the WSCJTC back in June, Sig Saeur maintained that the P320 is "one of the most tested, proven, and chosen side arms in small arms history, [and] that as designed, the P320 cannot discharge without a trigger pull, and that multiple redundant safeties prevent this from occurring." The company is now offering a "voluntary upgrade" to customers, however, stating on its website:
"Through additional testing above and beyond standard American National Standards Institute (ANSI)/Sporting Arms & Ammunition Institute (SAAMI), National Institute of Justice (NIJ), Department of Justice (DOJ), Massachusetts, California, and other global military and law enforcement protocols, we have confirmed that usually after multiple drops, at certain angles and conditions, a potential discharge of the firearm may result when dropped. Although it is a rare occurrence, with very specific conditions, SIG SAUER is offering an upgrade to all of its current P320 owners.
Platkin is seeking both a mandatory recall of all P320s, as well as an order halting their sale in the Garden State.
New Jersey’s lawsuit alleges that the P320’s design allows the gun to be fully cocked and ready to fire once a round is in the chamber. The gun’s weak internal safety mechanisms can allow regular movement to release the striker inside the gun, which can then result in a misfire, the lawsuit claims.
Sig Sauer has said the P320 is chosen by militaries and law enforcement across the globe. But the lawsuit claims that law enforcement officers, who often wear handguns holstered with a round in the chamber, are at the greatest risk of a misfire.
Platkin's lawsuit also alleges that there have been documented unintended discharges involving the P320 in several New Jersey police deparments, including the death of Orange, New Jersey Police Detective Lieutenant Walter Imbert, who died after his gun discharged while he was on the job. According to Platkin, "evidence from the scene indicated that his finger was not touching the trigger when the P320 unintentionally discharged, killing this highly experienced officer."
While Platkin's suit against Sig marks the first time a state has sued the gunmaker over the P320, I doubt it will be the last. This fits with the gun control lobby's strategy of piecemeal bans on handguns, since a categorical ban was taken off the table by the Heller decision. Just like multiple states and cities have sued Glock seeking to ban the popular semiautomatic pistols over their illegal conversion into machine guns through the use of switches, I think we'll see other attorneys general join Platkin's campaign against Sig in the days and weeks ahead.
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