The City of Chicago announced on Wednesday a first-of-its-kind lawsuit against gun manufacturer Glock for manufacturing handguns that can easily be converted into automatic firearms.
The complaint alleges that Glock “unreasonably endangers” Chicagoans by continuing the sale and manufacturing of semiautomatic pistols that can, at little cost and with little time and effort, be converted into illegal automatic weapons.
“Selling firearms that can so easily be converted into automatic weapons makes heinous acts even more deadly,” Mayor Brandon Johnson said in a press release.
“We are doing everything we can in collaboration with others committed to ending gun violence to hold Glock accountable for putting profits over public safety,” Mr. Johnson added.
The complaint alleges Glock is aware and can fix the problem “but has chosen not to, putting profits over public safety and violating the law.”
With the lawsuit, the crime-riddled city hopes to achieve a court order banning Glock from selling its easily converted pistols to Chicago civilians.
The Mayor’s office said the city is also seeking penalties against Glock and damages for the harm caused to the city.
Glock, the Austria-based manufacturer known for its polymer-framed pistols, has for decades been the supplier of some of the most popular handgun models in the United States—favored alike by criminals and law-abiding citizens.
Several of its handguns can easily be made to fire automatically by installing an auto sear—a cheap, small device commonly known as a “Glock switch.” The procedure takes a matter of minutes and requires no special equipment other than one or maybe two common household tools.
The switches are the size of a quarter and can be easily purchased illegally online, typically for around $20 to $25. Auto sears can also be manufactured at home using a 3D printer.
Chinese Imports
Many auto sears are made in China and falsely marketed online as other household or recreational products, the lawsuit alleges.
“These overseas manufacturers often quickly dissolve to avoid investigation or legal action, with new ones emerging to replace them,” the complaint stated.
Some manufacturers have even made auto sears that have the Glock logo printed on them, while the gun company itself does not produce these items.
Rising Crime and Alleged Stubbornness
According to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), from 2017 to 2021, the Chicago Police Department (CPD) confiscated some 8,000 Glock pistols in connection with a wide variety of crimes, including homicides, aggravated assaults, kidnappings, home invasions, carjackings, attempted robberies, and so on.
In the past two years alone, over 1,100 modified Glocks have been recovered by the CPD, as law enforcement all over the country is noticing a dramatic rise in the use of auto sears and automatic weapons.
Prosecutors accused Glock of not making any meaningful effort to prevent the use of auto sears on its handguns. A recent statement from the company that “the design of the pistol cannot be altered” to avoid these modifications was rejected by prosecutors, who provided photos and technical commentary claiming the opposite.
Though Glock has changed the design of its Gen5 model slightly to prevent the installation of auto sears, prosecutors allege that Glock “knew that its addition of a small plastic piece on the back of the gun … can be filed down easily with a simple tool.”
“Moreover, Glock continues to sell Gen3 and Gen4 Glocks nationwide and has not made any change to their design,” the complaint added.
The complaint also alleges that selling handguns that can be so easily converted to an illegal machine gun and persistently failing to take reasonable steps to prevent or mitigate the problem is an unfair business practice that constitutes aiding and abetting violations of federal and state prohibitions on the possession of machine guns.
The lawsuit does not pertain to the sale of Glocks to law enforcement.
