City of Chicago sues Glock Inc. over 'facilitating' illegal gun conversions
The firearms can be turned into machine guns for as little as $20, the lawsuit claims
Chicago suing gunmaker Glock Inc. over convertible machine guns
The City of Chicago filed a lawsuit against Glock Inc. on Tuesday, blaming the gun manufacturer for facilitating the proliferation of illegal machine guns. (FOX 32)
The city of Chicago has filed a lawsuit against Glock, Inc., blaming the gun-maker for facilitating the manufacturing of illegal machine guns being used on the crime-ridden streets of the Windy City.
"Criminals armed with Modified Glocks are emboldened because of their military-grade firepower, and they kill and injure more people, increasing the terror felt by ordinary Chicagoans," the lawsuit said.
The lawsuit alleges that Georgia-based Glock, Inc., endangers Chicago residents by manufacturing and distributing machine guns that can "easily" be modified into guns that can fire as many as 1,200 rounds per minute on the streets of the city.
"Glock knows that it takes little effort to convert its pistols into illegal machine guns and that criminals frequently do so," the lawsuit alleges. "Glock also knows it could fix the problem, but has chosen not to, putting profits over public safety and violating the law."
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A semi-automatic Glock pistol. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon/File / AP Newsroom)
The guns can be converted with an auto sears, a cheap, small device commonly known as a "Glock switch."
According to the lawsuit, the Glock switches are the size of a quarter and are easily purchased illegally online for around $20 or manufactured at home using a 3D printer.
The lawsuit said that the Chicago Police Department has recovered over 1,100 modified Glocks, from the beginning of 2021 through Dec. 31, 2023.
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"These terrifying weapons have caused death and destruction throughout Chicago: they have been recovered in connection with homicides, aggravated assaults, batteries, kidnappings, burglaries, home invasions, carjackings, and attempted robberies," the lawsuit said.
The city of Chicago sued Georgia-based Glock, Inc., on Tuesday. (AP Photo/David Goldman/File / AP Newsroom)
The city claimed Glock was "aiding and abetting" the violation of federal and state law prohibiting the possession of machine guns, calling the manufacturer negligent.
The lawsuit seeks a court order requiring the company to stop selling guns to people in Chicago along with unspecified damages.
Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson (Scott Olson/Getty Images / Getty Images)
In a press release, Mayor Brandon Johnson blamed guns for "plaguing our communities" with gun violence.
"The City of Chicago is encountering a deadly new frontier in the gun violence plaguing our communities because of the increase of fully automatic Glocks on our streets," Mayor Johnson said in a press release.
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"Selling firearms that can so easily be converted into automatic weapons makes heinous acts even more deadly, so 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."
FOX Business has reached out to Glock, Inc., for comment.