For the second time in a week, Sig Sauer is claiming victory in court against lawsuits against the company’s P320 semi-automatic pistol, as the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts dismissed with prejudice the case of Ahern v. Sig Sauer, Inc.
After a legal battle lasting nearly five years, plaintiff Thomas Ahern abandoned his claim against the company that the P320 pistol discharged without a trigger pull as he withdrew it from his security holster while in the rear of a van.
According to a Sig Sauer press release, “The Cambridge Police Department investigated the incident and determined that Mr. Ahern’s handling of the weapon violated numerous departmental rules and caused the gun to discharge in the rear of the van.”
“We’re pleased with this voluntary dismissal. It is further recognition of SIG SAUER showing the P320 cannot discharge without a trigger pull, as established by SIG SAUER testing and multiple independent third-party analysis, including in this case testing conducted by the Boston Police Department Firearms Analysis Unit,” said Aloke Chakravarty, counsel for SIG SAUER, in the press release. “This outcome marks SIG SAUER’s nearly 20th case dismissal to date, and we are proud to continue to defend the P320 and the industry-leading technology behind it.”
Only two days earlier, the U.S. District Court for the District of Colorado also dismissed with prejudice the Jantz v. Sig Sauer Inc. P320 case. Following two years of discovery presenting all evidence and allegations, the plaintiff voluntarily withdrew the case after SIG SAUER showed the P320 could not discharge without a trigger pull.
P320 CASE DISMISSED IN COLORADO FEDERAL COURT
In that case, the plaintiff claimed the striker released from the sear due to the presence of debris inside the pistol and further claimed that the safety spring was missing, Sig Sauer noted in a separate announcement. During the official inspection of the service-issued P320, the safety spring was present, contrary to the plaintiff’s claim. Over the course of a two-year discovery period, SIG SAUER yet again demonstrated the P320 could not discharge without a trigger pull, whether from potential debris or any other cause.
In the Massachusetts case, the Cambridge Police Department also sent the P320 to the Boston Police Department’s Firearms Analysis Unit as part of its investigation, Sig Sauer noted. Its testing of the P320 led to the conclusion that “based on functional tests and test firing, [the SIG P320 pistol] is NOT susceptible to an accidental discharge.” (capitalization emphasis included in the official report).
