NJ sues gunmaker to stop pistols from becoming machine guns

⚫ New Jersey and Minnesota sue Glock for their switchable pistols

⚫ Officials say a small piece of plastic can make a handgun even more dangerous

⚫ More Glock handguns are being recovered in New Jersey

A company based in Europe is turning American communities into war zones, according to New Jersey officials behind a new lawsuit against one of the most widely known names in the gun business.

Attorney General Matthew Platkin on Thursday announced that a lawsuit had been filed in the New Jersey Superior Court's Chancery Division, against the gun brand/manufacturer Glock, which allegedly has known for decades that its pistols can easily be converted into illegal machine guns on the street.

The "Glock switch"

The lawsuit alleges multiple violations of New Jersey laws, stemming from Glock's design and sale of pistols that can become even more dangerous with a small plastic piece commonly known as a "Glock switch."

"It's a small add-on component the size of a dime or a Lego piece that when added to the rear of a Glock pistol makes that pistol function as a machine gun," Platkin told reporters. "A switch enables a Glock to automatically fire up to 1,200 rounds per minute, a rate that's faster that many fully automatic and machine guns used by the United States Military."

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Officials showed a video demonstration of a Glock switch in use, before Platkin announced the lawsuit.

New Jersey has reached out to Glock for comment. The company is based in Austria.

Glocks in New Jersey

Glock handguns are becoming a more popular "crime gun" in the Garden State, according to Platkin's office — annual recoveries of the handguns have more than doubled between 2020 and 2023.

"Just like for any other product, in any other industry, the manufacturer of a product that be so easily, illegally, and dangerously altered is legally required to modify its design to keep the public safe," said Ravi Ramanathan, director of New Jersey's Statewide Affirmative Firearms Enforcement Office. "The gun industry should not be treated differently than any other industry. That is what we are demanding today."

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Minnesota is also part of the lawsuit against Glock. It's the first action of a newly formed coalition of 16 state attorneys general devoted to curbing gun violence.

Officials want sales of the switchable pistols to cease. In addition, the lawsuit seeks restitution for the "harms that they've caused" New Jersey residents.

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