The firearms manufacturer Glock is facing a 41-page long lawsuit instituted by the City of Chicago, which has accused the gun manufacturer of not preempting the possibility of the installation of a third-party add-on which will effectively transform the semi-automatic pistol into a fully automatic firearm.
While the original semi-automatic pistol made by Glock does not feature the auto sear switch, the add-on is freely available online for just $20 or can be easily created using 3D technology.
The device can be easily installed with a screwdriver by even a novice since the methodology is freely accessible from hundreds of tutorial videos on the internet.
Once installed, the semi-automatic pistol becomes an automatic firearm and can be used for mass killings.
Laws in the United States permit citizens to keep only semi-automatic weapons, and automatic firearms can be obtained only by a special licensing and vetting process.
However, the auto sear switch can easily convert the firearm into a mass-killing weapon, and in the past years, law officials have confiscated hundreds of modified weapons.
Glock Under Fire from Chicago Lawsuit
The lawsuit also pointed out the fact that an auto sear “switch” cannot be easily installed on the pistols of other manufacturers, or the process is complicated and technical that it is beyond the reach of most ordinary citizens.
The lawsuit alleged that despite being aware of these lacunae, Glock had put profits over the safety of the public and did nothing on this matter.
Therefore, the company must be made accountable.
In a statement, Mayor Brandon Johnson said that Glock must be made accountable for selling firearms which have a possibility of being converted into weapons of mass killing.
Brandon added that he will do everything to bring a halt to the culture of gun violence.
The National Firearms Act, instituted in 1934, limited the ownership of automatic weapons to a select few.
The act came into force after instances where gangs were using automatic Thompson submachine guns, especially after the 1929 St. Valentine’s Day massacre in Chicago.
The lawsuit alleges that the auto sear switch is a ploy to circumvent the gun laws. The semi-automatic firearm license can be easily obtained, and with minor modification, can be converted into an automatic firearm.
This is not the first time a Mayor has tried to hold a gun manufacturer accountable. Mayor Richard M. Daley had also filed a lawsuit alleging that guns sold by gun manufacturers often end up in the hands of criminals but was unsuccessful in his venture. His two lawsuits were dismissed by the Illinois Supreme Court in 2004.
