The New Jersey attorney general's office was joined by 12 others in writing an open letter warning Georgia-based Glock that if allegations in a recent lawsuit are true, they will be pursuing legal action against the company.
The open letter comes about a week after the city of Chicago filed suit against Glock, alleging that the company's popular semi-auto pistol design can be easily converted into a machine gun.
In a statement, Matthew Platkin, New Jersey's attorney general, referenced details listed in Chicago's complaint, saying that "modified weapons are being recovered by law enforcement at levels that are frankly shocking."
"Turning a pistol into a deadly machine gun should not be as easy as fitting Lego pieces together," Platkin said, adding that if Chicago's allegations are true, "it would be difficult to think of a better example of a company choosing bloody profits over public safety by ignoring more responsible design choices."
In turn, Platkin, along with attorneys general from 11 other states and the District of Columbia, asked that Glock preserve all documents related to how "Glock switches" are used in crimes, the company's understanding of laws regarding illegal machine guns, statements showing profits made from such modifications, and marketing materials.
Chicago's lawsuit, filed in a Cook County court in March, cites the state of Illinois's Firearms Industry Responsibility Act, a 2023 law that aims "to hold gun companies accountable for conduct that endangers the public." The filing says that law enforcement has recovered in Chicago more than 1,100 Glocks that were illegally converted into machine guns.
While gun rights supporters will point out that full-auto conversion kits are sold by third-party manufacturers, the lawsuit argues that Glock is making a "willful decision" to produce an easy-to-modify design. The complaint adds that it's "in stark contrast" to other manufacturers, whose designs require "time-consuming and difficult engineering well beyond the capability of most civilians."
