3D printed auto sears, small components that turn pistols into fully automatic machine guns, have been linked to increased crime in Chicago, a lawsuit has outlined.
The use of auto sears in Chicago has skyrocketed, with a growing association between the 3D printable converters and US gun manufacturer Glock. When fitted with auto sears, Glock pistols can fire up to 1,200 rounds per minute, a rate faster than the standard M4 rifle used by the US military.
From 2021 to December 31, 2023, over 1,100 modified Glocks were recovered by the Chicago Police Department (CPD). Additionally, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) reported a 400% increase in recoveries of illegally modified machine guns from 2020 to 2021 throughout the US. These firearms have been linked to homicides, aggravated assaults, batteries, kidnappings, burglaries, home invasions, carjackings, and attempted robberies.
The City of Chicago has filed an extended lawsuit against Glock in the Cook County Circuit Court. According to Chicago, the company has made a conscious “business decision” to profit from the sales of easily modifiable guns. The suit claims the firearm manufacturer refuses to modify its pistols to prevent the use of auto sears.
The complaint was originally filed in Cook County Circuit Court in March 2024 and then moved to federal court by Glock. Lawyers for the City of Chicago dropped the initial lawsuit on 22 July, after Glock rejected the City’s legal claims, arguing that federal law protects them from the criminal actions of third parties. The following day, Chicago filed the updated complaint in Cook County.
The revised version includes new claims against two gun stores reportedly linked to crimes in Chicago and additional counts against Glock Ges.m.b.H, an Austrian corporate affiliate of Glock.
“Glock is profiting by making the City less safe,” the plaintiffs stated. “Glock has created a new terror on the streets of Chicago – a terror once reserved for battlefields.”
Jorge Leon, the inventor of the “Fire Selector System,” an auto sear patented for Glock pistols, has expressed regrets over its creation. He originally designed the converter to enhance the capabilities of the military, counterterrorism units, and police departments in his native Venezuela.
Leon now laments patenting his auto-sear invention, as this has made the design easily accessible and replicable for 3D printing. Originally filed in 1996, Leon’s patent expired in 2016. Therefore, he has no legal recourse to prevent anyone from replicating his auto-sear design for malicious purposes.
The rise of 3D printed machine gun converters
Fully automatic firearms have been heavily regulated under federal law since the 1930’s, banning the sale of machine guns to the general public.
Legally, machine guns are defined as any firearm capable of shooting more than one bullet without additional manual input. To overcome this, criminals convert readily accessible semi-automatic weapons, such as Glock pistols, into fully automatic firearms.
Over recent years, auto sears have become the go-to tool to achieve this. These small components, also known as “Glock switches,” include a small protrusion that holds the pistol’s internal trigger bar down. This enables the weapon to fire continuously with a single trigger pull.
Most auto sears that originate in the US are 3D printed. Downloadable 3D print files are available online, allowing virtually anyone to convert their Glock handgun into a fully automatic firearm at minimal expense. This makes it difficult for law enforcement to track, intercept and eradicate the parts.
Prefabricated auto sears are also said to be cheap and easy to acquire. Largely made in China, these parts are illegally imported into America and sold within the criminal gun market.
Machine gun converters are becoming more prominent in the US. According to the lawsuit, “Glock Full Auto Switch” has become one of the most frequent firearm-related internet search terms over recent years. Additionally, the number of machine gun conversion parts recovered between 2017 and 2021 increased by 570% compared to the previous five-year period.
A company that uses audio sensors to monitor gunfire reported 75,544 recorded rounds of “suspected automatic gunfire in 2022 in portions of 127 cities,” including Chicago. This represents a 49% increase from 2021.
“Four years ago this was not an issue for law enforcement,” commented Christopher Amon, a Special Agent in the ATF’s Chicago Field Division. “Early on in my career, rarely, if ever, did you see machine guns being used in violent crimes, and now it’s everywhere on our streets.”
Amon told ABC Chicago that converted firearms are made more deadly by their rapid-fire capabilities. “You’re able to get off, in some cases, 30 rounds in a matter of seconds,” he added.
Glock challenged over machine gun modifications
The newly expanded suit alleges that Glock has deceptively marketed its pistols, and lies about its commitment to making communities safer.
The City of Chicago argues that Glock has sold its pistols through gun stores in the Chicago area that are heavily linked to gun crime, which it calls “some of the most irresponsible gun stores in the country.” The new lawsuit points to Midwest Sporting Goods and Eagle Sports Range, the latter of which had its license revoked by the ATF due to dangerous business practices.
The city notes that the store shut down in 2022, but was reopened by a family relative and has allegedly “continued its same dangerous sales practices.” These allegedly include marketing a modified Glock to its customers through its “full auto experience,” where customers can fire an automatic pistol on its range.
According to the lawsuit, Midwest Sporting Goods has “consistently ranked in the top two of dealer sources of crime guns recovered in Chicago,” since 2009. In 2021, Eagle Sports Range allegedly accounted for 4% of the City’s crime guns that were traced to a known purchaser. This reportedly makes it “the second-most frequent supplier of crime guns into Chicago.”
The lawsuit also claims that Glock has failed to institute reasonable controls and safeguards to prevent the unlawful possession of the company’s handguns. This reportedly violates the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act and the Municipal Code of Chicago.
Chicago hopes to prevent Glock from selling modifiable pistols to Chicago citizens, and wants Glock to pay a $10,000 fine each day it violates the Municipal Code of Chicago. It is also seeking compensation for the damage caused by these weapons.
Glocks are the most popular firearm in the US and are extensively used by Chicago criminals. According to the ATF, over 8,000 Glock pistols were recovered in connection with criminal investigations in Chicago between 2017 and 2021, much more than the next most popular firearm.
Chicago claims that the Glock’s popularity in the criminal market is owed in part to the ease at which they can be converted into machine guns.
They argue that auto sears can be easily installed into Glock’s Generation 1 through 4 pistols, with many videos online outlining this process. This is unlike other handguns, such as Smith & Wesson, Sig Sauer, Springfield Armory, or Walther Arms, which reportedly require lengthy engineering to be modified.
Glock claims “the design of the pistol cannot be altered” to make it harder to install machine gun modifications. This is disputed by the City of Chicago, which points to multiple design changes, such as internal and external modifications, to achieve this. In an interview with KARE 11, Jorge Leon stated that Glock design changes could render auto sears obsolete.
The lawsuit asserts that Glock has blatantly refused to make these changes. According to Chicago, the company has made a conscious “business decision” to profit from selling easily modifiable guns to the civilian market.
The plaintiffs stated, “Glock has knowingly engaged in conduct that is unreasonable and unlawful, endangering the safety and health of the public in Chicago.”
The City of Chicago is not the only critic of Glock. On April 11, 2022, 41 members of Congress published a letter highlighting the growing use of auto sears in shootings across the nation, identifying Glock-made pistols by name. Federal officials have also directly contacted Glock regarding ways to address the problem.
Restricting 3D printed guns
3D printable gun files have been prevalent on file-sharing sites over recent years, drawing links between 3D printing and gun crime. As such, manufacturers, regulators and social media firms have worked to restrict the availability of 3D printable firearms.
In 2021, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) imposed Export Administration Regulations (EAR) on those manufacturing, exporting or ‘furnishing’ 3D printed guns.
Under the regulations, a BIS license is required to post online ‘‘any file, including any CAD file, that once converted will be in an executable code for the production of a firearm.” When issued, licenses are valid for four years. Those intending to export files need to provide specifics such as the caliber, barrel length and finish of any weaponry.
Elsewhere, 3D printer manufacturers Dagoma and TBWA/Paris have previously distributed fake and unusable gun files to frustrate those trying to download them. Facebook has also stated that “sharing instructions on how to produce 3D printed firearms is “not allowed under its Community Standards.” The Firearms Policy Coalition opposed this move, suggesting it violated freedom of speech.
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Featured image shows Cook County Circuit Court’s Leighton criminal courthouse. Photo via Chicago Sun-Times.
