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Littleton Joyce Obtains Defense Verdict in P320 Litigation

Littleton Joyce is pleased to announce it obtained a defense verdict in favor of SIG SAUER in a trial held in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts. The case arose out of an October 19, 2019 accidental discharge incident in which the plaintiff, a police officer, pulled the trigger of his unholstered P320 pistol with at least 6.5 pounds of force while shoving it in his waistband. The incident was captured by video. The plaintiff alleged that the trigger was too easy to pull and needed a manual thumb safety or tabbed trigger. The defense presented evidence that the plaintiff’s employer would not have purchased a pistol with a manual thumb safety and that the plaintiff knew the trigger pull characteristics of the P320 pistol, knew that it did not have a manual thumb safety or tabbed trigger, and unreasonably proceeded to shove the loaded pistol in his waistband in contravention of basic rules of safe firearm handling and his employer’s policies and procedures. After more than two weeks of trial, the jury returned a unanimous defense verdict, finding that SIG SAUER was not liable for the plaintiff’s injuries because the plaintiff knew the trigger pull characteristics of his P320 pistol and proceeded unreasonably in shoving his loaded pistol into his waistband.