Tampa officer sues Sig Sauer for alleged defect that caused misfire, injury

fox13news.com ^ | Aug. 6, 2021 | Catherine Hawley

[PROCON]

TAMPA, Fla. - A Tampa Police Reserve Officer says his department-issued service weapon fired without pulling the trigger, seriously injuring him. The 30-year veteran of the force is now suing the company that manufactures the firearm.

Last February, Bob Northrop was working an extra duty assignment as a TPD Reserve Officer patrolling Jefferson High School during a baseball game. Northrop says he was standing just feet from students and their families when his hand brushed his holstered service weapon.

"And the very second I touched the gun, it discharged," Northrop said. "I tried to take another step and I couldn't."

The 69-year-old needed emergency surgery after a 9mm hollow-point bullet shattered his leg and ankle, causing permanent injuries.

Northrop’s legal team represents nearly two-dozen people across the nation whose P320s fired without pulling the trigger. They say Sig Sauer knows about the firearm’s defective design and is being negligent.

"I am emphatic that I didn't do anything illegal against the rules, against policy, or anything else," said Northrop. "That gun discharged by itself."

[M. Thatcher]

I am skeptical.

Ditto.

Guy shoots himself in the foot. HAD to be the gun's fault. (Not.)

[PROCON]

Sell your Sig and get a Glock, Laz.

[circlecity]

“This is apparently an issue. A number of gun channels still left on YT have talked about it in recent months although I thought Sig did a recall to fix the problem.”

I recall a few years ago when the gun 1st came out there was a drop fire issue. If you dropped the gun and it hit oh just the right spot it would fire. But Sig did a recall and retrofitted the guns. They also modified the design moving forward to eliminate the defect. Maybe these are first Gen models that never got fixed. I’m still skeptical that brushing your hand on the butt could trigger a discharge.

[Openurmind]

“regardless, I don’t keep one in the chamber so I’m not going to sweat it.”

Wise...

[lefty-lie-spy]

P229 for myself.

[Who is John Galt?]

That's a cheap shot. Of course you do. You know what I meant.

Sorry, it wasn't intended as a cheap shot - referencing the movies is an uncertain business (given how Hollywood usually depicts firearms ;^). Some autos have 'tip-up' barrels, and can be loaded without cycling the slide. And some folks might carry a loaded single action auto (like a Tokarev) with the hammer at half-cock, and just thumb back the hammer before firing. I was just trying to keep things simple & clear.

DA/SA can have one in the chamber without being cocked and all you have to do is pull the trigger for the first shot. All I wanted to know is if you had to cycle the slide to cock your gun. No value judgement. It's personal choice. My choice is DA/SA. Yours is not. Fine.

Actually, most of my favorite handguns have been DA/SA, although I like DAO for carry guns. Again, no insult (or personal preference) intended with my previous comments; just trying to clarify some obvious differences between firearms designs...

[Openurmind]

Are you familiar with positive/negative sear engagement? If it creeps because it is negative, with every jostle it can creep closer to the hammer break point. In which case any small bump can make it release because it is just barely hanging on the edge.

[OldGoatCPO]

I have a Colt 1903 .32 with all the safety features of a M1911. (Manufactured in 1926) It has three safety features counting my finger. One feature I like is the grip safety. Since I am not a professional shooter or a LEO I do not understand why that feature is not present on weapons with a striker assembly. I can see some areas where it may be a disadvantage for professionals. One could be a habitual lazy grip. On the range it is no big deal but maybe a different scenario in a stressful situation. With the slide safety, grip safety and finger discipline you still have to be damn certain you want to shoot.

This pistol is 95 years old and shoots like it just came out of the factory. I have never had a accidental discharge. I used to conceal carry it in the summers since it fits nicely in my shorts pocket. Almost no silhouette and has no hammer to catch on. I stopped carrying it. I am not ready to lose it if I have to use it. I will not carrying the 1903 so it can end up crushed or in some cops personal collection. Which MAY be how my Dad ended up with it. He occasionally took a weapon plus cash in swap for fixing cars back in the 50's and 60's. He had a few Chicago cops as customers. He got my antique .22 Short that way.

[StolarStorm]

I have the military version with the manuel safety as well. Is it correct to assume that the manual safety (when engaged) would eliminate the possibility of this occurring?

[zeugma]

// P229 for myself.

P226 and P229 for me. Love my Sigs. Pull the trigger and it will fire. The safety is between your ears.

[Who is John Galt?]

IIRC (it was almost 30 years ago), the trigger return spring was hanging up on a rough/poorly machined surface. If you pulled the trigger part way, then decided not to fire, the spring didn’t have enough power to return the trigger to the normal static ‘at rest’ position, and cycling the safety caused sufficient movement in the mechanism to (under certain circumstances) release the hammer. Smoothing out the machine marks allowed the trigger & trigger return spring to function as designed, and fixed the issue with that particular firearm...

[Aut Pax Aut Bellum]

Personally I carry hammer fired guns with a thumb safety so I know it can’t go off.
That doesn't apply here to the 320.
The 320 was also going off when dropped, owing to a heavy solid trigger that had enough mass under the right situation to actually pull the trigger . They updated it to a lighter trigger design.

[gundog]

Thanks. I always found the SKS trigger group to unnecessarily complicated. I laughed out loud the first time I saw an AK trigger group.

[cpt_dave]

So, the gunsmith is guessing it was a defective cartridge, is the right?

[SheepWhisperer]

Half cocked? Really?
Under what circumstance should a 1911 ever be half cocked and considered safe?

Yes, a serious question.

I’ve been carrying 1911 in various forms (including .357 magnum), for forty years and have never heard that half cocked was anything but unsafe.

[Openurmind]

A am not familiar with the safety and action on those and could be wrong about the possibility in this particular case. It depends on how the safety is designed. Does the safety only block the trigger from being pulled? Or does it also engage and control the action? If it is the first, negative sear creep can be a real thing in any firearm designed where the safety only functions to block trigger pull.

It is very rare, but can indeed happen because of sear machining variables. Even with best intentions, machining tools and jigs wear and these variables can change during a manufacturing run of the same part. There is no way to make them all precisely the exact same. It is too impractical to reset a jig and replace the cutting tool for each and every one machined.

I will find a diagram and look at how the safety works on those for sure. Because that is a good question and I am now curious.

[Openurmind]

Absolutely... Finger safety, Hammer, and the grip safety makes the design one of the safest. I like my 1911s for this reason.

[Who is John Galt?]

Some firearms are (obviously ;^) not designed to be ‘user friendly’! I worked with a guy (way back when I owned that SKS), who bought a Winchester Model 100 in .308, and decided to take it apart for a good cleaning. He ended up loading all of the loose parts into a box, and taking it to our local gunsmith, because he could NOT get it back together again...

[Mariner]

“”And the very second I touched the gun, it discharged,”

Yeah.

Right.

Everybody says that.

[Chewbarkah]

A decade ago there was a hue and cry against Audi. Allegedly certain models spontaneously accelerated all by themselves, crashing into garage walls, etc. Studies revealed that ownership of the model in question was concentrated in the elderly, who were punching the gas pedal rather than the brake.

I wonder if people are carrying the Sigs in a condition it was not designed for.