Issues with Plymouth Police duty weapons

Officers with the Plymouth Police Department are concerned about the liability they carry on their hips every day.

Monday evening, Police Chief John Weir and Patrolman Zack Wallace, who has been with the department for over six years and is the department’s firearms instructor, appeared before the Board of Public Works and Safety to discuss a nationwide issue with the Sig P320 handgun the officers are issued when they join the Plymouth force.

Chief Weir stated that he had seen some information regarding uncommanded discharges from the duty weapons purchased by the department in 2023.  The chief asked Officer Wallace to investigate the issues, and what he found was shocking. 

Wallace explained the uncommanded discharge and something that is not a negligent discharge.  Uncommanded is that there is no outside effect from the person wearing the weapon, causing it to go off.   He said that since 2016, the uncommended discharge from the Sig Sauer P320 has been an issue.  Wallace said an officer in Michigan was getting out of his vehicle, and the gun was discharged without the officer even touching the weapon while it was still in his holster.

Numerous legal cases against Sig Sauer are either in process or have been decided, but Sig claims that there are no issues with the 320. Issues with the uncommanded discharges have happened in multiple states across the nation.  Officer Wallace did say this is not just a law enforcement problem; it’s happened with civilian weapons as well.

Law Enforcement agencies across the country are banning the use of the P320, including Washington, Oregon, Oklahoma, Alabama, Connecticut, Florida, and Texas.  Wallace said various law enforcement agencies across the country are also banning the firearms because of the chance of uncommanded discharge.  There have been over 100 documented incidents, with 80 people being injured from the issue.   

The Board of Public Works and Safety was told that there are members of the Plymouth Police Department who do not feel comfortable with the Sig Sauer P320 and don’t want to have it in their homes around their family members because of the liability.

There are concerns that the department’s two School resource Officers carry that weapon in the schools, and Chief Weir and his wife own a daycare center, and he is concerned about being in the facility with his duty weapon.

The FBI had tests conducted on the Sig Sauer P320 and in over 50 field tests, it failed 15 times.  

Chief Weir requested to move forward with replacing the Sig 320 with a Glock, which is readily available and proven since the 80s.  He said he saw a video of an uncommanded discharge three years ago, and the old city administration wasn’t interested. A recent video with a school resource officer brought it back to light, so the chief asked to have Patrolman Wallace investigate.  

Chief Weir said pricing for new guns would be under $500 per weapon, while the current duty weapons that were purchased in 2023 were just over $1,100 each in a package deal. He said the red-dot optic sites and the flashlights used with the current Sig can be transferred to the Glocks, but they would need new holsters, which cost about $80 each. The chief said there is some trade-in value of $200 to $300 per gun, depending on condition.

The Clerk-Treasurer said the current duty weapons were purchased in 2023 for $324 each, with the trade-in of the old duty weapons.  Chief Weir said the additional equipment for the Sigs was paid for in a separate invoice. 

The Board of Public Works and Safety saw the liability and asked Chief Weir to get hard numbers back to them with options on trade-ins and add-ons.  He will bring that back to the next city meeting on July 28^th.