Transit police officers in Philadelphia will no longer carry SIG Sauer pistols after a weapon allegedly fired without a trigger pull.
On Aug. 26, SEPTA officials say an officer’s SIG Sauer P320 pistol discharged while still in its holster during rush hour inside of a subway station. No one was injured in the incident, and an investigation remains ongoing.
However, the agency is pulling its entire inventory of 350 P320 pistols out of service, and will replace them with Glock pistols.
“The department has received information that a preliminary inspection of the firearm was completed and failed to identify the reason why the weapon discharged without manipulation by the officer,” write SEPTA officials in a statement. “Out of an abundance of caution, SEPTA has moved swiftly to make an emergency purchase of firearms and holsters to replace the existing equipment used by the Transit Police.”
With headquarters in Newington, N.H., SIG Sauer is one of the state's largest manufacturers, employing approximately 1,600 people. Its P320 has been at the center of safety concerns following a string of alleged incidents of "dropfire," where the weapon discharges without a trigger pull. The company has settled at least two civil lawsuits with law enforcement officers injured by a P320.
The gun is also the focus of a proposed class action lawsuit filed by a Texas gun owner.
SIG Sauer maintains the weapon is safe, though the company offers what it terms a "voluntary upgrade" for owners concerned about the gun’s potentially flawed internal mechanisms.
