Philadelphia man awarded $11 million after Sig Sauer pistol fires without trigger being pulled

A jury in the US city of Philadelphia has awarded $11 million to a man injured when his Sig Sauer P320 pistol went off on its own while he was descending stairs. The incident caused severe injuries to his leg. This is the second significant verdict against Sig Sauer this year over its controversial P320 model.

After the three-week trial, the jury found Sig Sauer negligent for selling a defective firearm and holster. According to the plaintiff’s legal team, the P320 pistol has a defect that allows it to fire without the trigger being pulled. The flaw has reportedly caused injuries across the United States.

More than 100 people have made similar claims against the gunmaker. Meanwhile, Sig Sauer continues to defend the safety of the P320.

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"We’ve been asking Sig for over three years now to recall this gun, to fix it, and frankly to use the same type of safeties that other manufacturers are using that Sig Sauer is not,” said Robert W. Zimmerman, the lawyer for the plaintiff, while speaking toThe Guardian. He added that the jury’s decision “sends a strong message to Sig Sauer that they need to do something with this gun.”

The plaintiff, George Abrahams, a United States Army veteran and Philadelphia painting contractor, said the gun discharged while it was holstered in his pocket. Abrahams had placed the holstered pistol in the pocket of his pants, zipped it shut, and began walking downstairs when the gun fired. The bullet passed through his thigh and exited above his knee, leaving him with permanent injuries, court documents state.

This follows another case where earlier this year a federal jury awarded $2.35 million to a man from the US state of Georgia. The man was injured by his P320 after it discharged while holstered.

Both cases were handled by the law firm Saltz Mongeluzzi Bendesky, which is pursuing additional claims against Sig Sauer.

Ryan Hurd, Zimmerman’s co-counsel, said in a statement, “We have said it before, and juries are now speaking loud and clear with their verdicts: this gun is a danger to gun owners and anyone within the vicinity of this gun.”

Lawyers estimate around 500,000 of these pistols are currently in circulation in the US. The lawsuit also claimed that the P320 “is the most dangerous pistol for its users sold in the United States market.”

They also highlighted that the military version of the P320 includes an external safety to prevent accidental discharges, but this feature is not included in the civilian and law enforcement versions.

(With inputs from agencies)