(UnitedVoice.com) – Chicago is known for having some of the toughest gun restrictions in the country. It’s also known as being one of the bloodiest cities in America. Now, city leaders are suing a major gun manufacturer.
On March 19, the city of Chicago filed a lawsuit against Glock Inc. in Cook County Circuit Court. The city is accusing the company of allowing illegal machine guns to spread throughout the community. According to the suit, the gunmaker has sold a weapon that they know can be modified easily to essentially turn the average pistol into an automatic weapon.
The dispute is over a small switch that gun owners can purchase for about $20 or even make themselves at their homes with a 3D printer. The device is known as a “Glock switch,” “Glock auto-sear,” or a “giggle switch.” Users attach the part on the back end of the slide, and it turns the weapon into a fully automatic gun, capable of theoretically firing as many as 1,200 rounds in a minute. However, such claims are highly debatable.
The lawsuit details deadly incidents that have taken place in Chicago involving the weapons. They also say police officers are becoming outgunned on the streets. From 2021 to late 2023, police confiscated over 1,100 modified Glocks.
The complaint uses the Illinois Firearms Industry Responsibility Act (FIRA) to go after the beloved American gunmaker. The law allows people to sue gun manufacturers for causing public harm by their business practices. In this case, the city argues the gunmaker has refused to make changes to their guns to prevent the switches from working.
Everytown Law, part of the Everytown for Gun Safety gun violence prevention organization born out of the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre, has joined the plaintiffs in the case. Executive Director Eric Tirschwell pointed out that other gun manufacturers sell pistols that “are not easily modified” the same way the Glock pistol is.
Opponents blame Chicago’s liberal policies and strict gun laws for the violence in the city.
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