The City of Chicago has filed a new lawsuit against Glock Inc., accusing the gun manufacturer of contributing to the city’s gun violence crisis by designing pistols that can easily be modified into automatic weapons. The lawsuit, filed in state court, comes after the city withdrew a similar federal suit earlier this month.
According to a recent feature by ProPublica, an “auto sear” or “switch,” which is used to convert a Glock semiautomatic pistol into a so-called machine gun capable of a rapid rate of fire, are flooding Chicago as the city grapples with yet another violent summer.
ProPublica reports that Chicago’s suit against Glock, its Austria-based parent company, and two local retailers, Midwest Sporting Goods in Lyons and Eagle Sports Range in Oak Forest, alleges that Glock has designed its pistols in a way that facilitates illegal modification and has failed to take necessary steps to protect the public from these modifications.
City officials told the media outlet that in the past two years, Chicago police have recovered nearly 1,200 Glock pistols equipped with auto sear devices. These modified firearms have been linked to numerous crimes, including homicides.
Shift in Tactics
Chicago’s lawsuit represents a shift in legal tactics against the gun industry. Historically, municipalities and victims have faced significant obstacles in holding gun manufacturers accountable due to the federal Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA), which shields gunmakers from liability for crimes committed with their products. Passed in 2005, PLCAA has been used by gun manufacturers to thwart numerous unjustifiable lawsuits.
However, recent legal tactics have shown that there are ways to navigate around PLCAA’s protections, according to ProPublica. They note that Chicago’s new lawsuit is narrower in scope, targeting specific allegations of negligence and wrongdoing that are now barred by the Illinois Firearms Industry Responsibility Act, enacted in 2023 and currently being challenged in court by the NSSF. This state law restricts how gun dealers and manufacturers can market and sell their products and subjects them to civil penalties for violations.
Steve Kane, an attorney for the city, emphasized the significance of this new legal framework.
“That’s a big difference from where we were back in 2000,” Kane said. The lawsuit argues that Glock’s designs make it easy to install auto sears, increasing their popularity among criminals.
A Changing Legal Landscape
The legal landscape for gun manufacturers is evolving. Despite the broad immunity provided by PLCAA, plaintiffs have found success by leveraging specific exceptions in the law. For example, the families of victims in the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting secured a $73 million settlement by arguing that Remington’s marketing of the Bushmaster rifle violated Connecticut’s consumer protection laws.
ProPublica reports that Chicago’s lawsuit also follows a string of recent legal actions against the gun industry. In 2021, the city sued Westforth Sports, a gun retailer in Gary, Indiana, over alleged negligence in preventing illegal gun sales. Although a Cook County judge dismissed the lawsuit in May 2023, citing jurisdictional issues, the city has appealed the decision.
Chicago’s new lawsuit is part of Mayor Brandon Johnson’s broader strategy to address gun violence, which includes funding violence prevention and intervention programs. Bradly Johnson, chief community officer for BUILD, a Chicago civic group, supports the city’s approach.
“Reducing gun crime requires a broad strategy, including holding gunmakers accountable for how their products are misused,” he told ProPublica.
As legal battles over PLCAA continue, state legislatures are also weighing in. While some states have passed laws to further immunize the gun industry, others, like Illinois, have enacted legislation to hold gunmakers accountable for public safety violations.
Chicago’s latest legal effort is just one more grenade launched over the wall at gun rights and companies that make products that work as engineered, revealing anti-gun politicians and leaders will stop at nothing until they have eroded Second Amendment rights under the guise of “gun safety.” If one legal or legislative scheme won’t work, they will always come up with another.
tryin to shift blame from murderous thugs to a manufacturer…………if it weren’t so pitiful, it would be funny!!
They are not interested and never have been interested in solving the problem. They are agents of chaos and it is the vehicle they use to go after everybody not responsible because they refuse to take responsibility for their own failures.
It’s a Gun Control publicity stunt.
had to see this coming…personal accountability of the user is never factored in…..
Everyone should sue Johnson’s Mother for NOT having an abortion and subjecting us to him.
AGREE! Pretty funny too.
While some dumbfuks are blaming the gun other dumbfuks are blaming skin color. It’s called Criminal Misuse like the perp on the roof.
Pulled out of Federal Court but even if the State Court hears the case and rules in favor of Chicago (doubtful) it will still wind up in a Federal Appellate Court… Glock has no more control over who makes stuff that is adaptable to their product than any other company would have over any other aftermarket
“Glock has no more control over who makes stuff that is adaptable to their product than any other company would have over any other aftermarket”
I find it strange that car companies and alcohol companies don’t get sued for drunk driving deaths…
There was one such successful lawsuit. A drunk person passed out in his/her car while it was idling in Park. However, when the drunk person passed out, he/she depressed the gas pedal all the way to the floor causing the engine to rev at red line. (Software limits the engine speed to red line, approximately 6,000 r.p.m.) Nevertheless, something in the engine or exhaust system became very hot after 30 minutes (or some such silliness) and set the car on fire, killing the drunk person in the driver’s seat.
The family of the deceased driver sued the car company–claiming that a car should never be able to catch on fire–and won. Now, the software in many/most cars will shut down the engine after several minutes of revving at high r.p.m.
Most newer cars won’t rev high in park. Many are limited under 3500 rpm. And the limiter causes the car to jump and shake in most cases. If you’re that drunk, well, shouldn’t have gotten into a car in the first place as you can get a DUI in a vehicle just sitting behind the wheel.
Geoff, wait until the PLCAA gets repealed. The lawyers are already circling.
Umm, no. The case is venued in very anti-gun Crook County, Illinois, where murderers walk on gun charges. The case may be a slam dunk for the City–which is why they pulled iot out of federal court, and sued a few local businesses to keep Glock from pushing it back into federal court. The way the system works, this case will go all the way up to the Illinois Supreme Court. Then an only then will the case possibly make it back into the federal system, by a petition for cert to SCOTUS. The federal court of appeals will not get to touch it. A smart legal strategy for the Ciity. This will be tied up in litigation for a decade.
I am not suggesting that the case ha merit. I can take a V-8 powered car, turbo charge it, add nitrous, slicks, and glass packs, plus any other go fast after market part that I can think of that will allow the car to exceed the speed limit, but no matter how many mods I make, the original manufacturer should still not be liable for changes that are not in it control.
As usual, the idiots in charge are blaming the hardware, and anyone and everyone else instead of themselves and their failed policies.
Typical of Democrat politicians.
So Beer companies are liable for drunk driving deaths because they negligently manufacture cans and bottles that fit in vehicle cup holders. They should be more responsible and make the containers so large as to not fit inside any vehicle.
Glock needs to refuse to do business with Chicago and cut off and distributors who do as well as refuse replacement parts and warranty work. I would encourage all US manufacturers to cut them off and suggest they arm their police with surplus Russian Makarovs.
That is the purpose for the suit. I wonder how the police will feel about that.
Perhaps the ones worth a damn will move on. Eventually Chicago crime is going to get bad enough it will turn into another Detroit, until then the corrupt Democrats will continue to prey on the helpless.
I am particularly pleased to see that the state law in question places restrictions on how gun manufacturers and dealers can market and sell uno online products. The unethical marketing tactics used by some in the industry have always struck me as a major part of the problem. Holding them accountable for their irresponsible behavior is an important step.
I call bull shit on that. If others are like me, they really don’t look at ads except to see what is new. We read reviews to see if something is worthwhile looking into. The first time this was tried, plaintiffs did not have a case, but used the lawsuit to engage in discovery warfare at huge expense. They would have lost in the end because the shooter was not the buyer and had killed his mother to get access to the firearm, and since he was dead, they had no way of proving that ads had any effect on his decision to use that weapon to commit multiple felonies. Moreover, manufacturers may advertise on line,but very very few sell directly to consumers–they can’t sell firearms except through an FFL, and most use middlemen wholesalers and retailers for the actual sales. Glock switches are not made or marketed by Glock, which did not invent them nor sell them.
SPAM abuse complaint filed with Cloudflare for SPAMVERTIZED website.
“A guy with big old mudgrips on his F150 ran over my dog. I’m suing Chevy.”
Judge: “Rock on, brother-man. Preach it to me! But you should hire 5 or 6 more lawyers.”
There is an easy fix to all this. Rework our legal system so that if you sue and lose, you are responsible for all legal fees for the person you sued as well as another law that says if you file repeated lawsuits over the same issue you are fined when you lose as well as having to pay the other sides legal expenses.
Gee. To what extreme can this be taken as others have noted. But virtually any semi-auto can be readily converted to a full auto weapon with a 5 dollar file and hack saw from Harbor Freight. SMG’S are far easier and cheaper to build than semi autos. Maybe they will ban books next.
Shootcago should hold the manufacturers of the defective citizens….ie the parents…. actually doing the shooting and illegal Glock modifications for their illegal actions. Bu…bu…but, that would be imposing responsibility on their constituents…can’t be havin’ none o’ that silly responsibility. They might learn to be responsible citizens not needing Libturd free shit.
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