East Lyme Police Lt. Michael Macek said he’s never had problems with the Sig Sauer handgun he carried for more than 22 years.

But he said he and other administrators at the department who currently carry the Sig Sauer P320 will begin replacing them with Glock 45 9 mm handguns after seeing numerous reports from across the country of the handguns firing without the trigger being pulled.

The department will join others such as Montville, which last year traded its Sig Sauers for Glocks after police said one of their officers’ handguns had discharged without the trigger being pulled.

Locally, the East Lyme and Town of Groton departments are the only departments whose officers continue to carry the Sig Sauer P320 handguns.

But East Lyme is looking to switch “as soon as possible,” taking a proactive approach in hopes of avoiding an incident like the one in Montville, said Macek.

He said only five administrative staff members such as himself and the chief carry the P320 handguns now. The other 29 full-time and three part-time officers who are “out and dealing with the public,” still carry the older .40-caliber Sig Sauer P229, which have not had the problem, he said.

Macek cited multiple incidents around the state involving the Sig Sauer P320, including the discharge that occurred in July 2023 in the lobby of the Montville police station.

On July 24, 2023, an unidentified Montville officer’s Sig Sauer P320, “spontaneously discharged” while the officer arrested a suspect in the police station lobby, police said. Nobody was injured.

Three days afterwards, Chief Wilfred Blanchette announced that the department would replace its P320 handguns with a Glock 9 mm handgun.

On Tuesday, Montville Lt. David Radford said since the department acquired the new Glock handguns, they have functioned without any problems.

“We’ve had a lot of range time with the new weapons, and the department has transitioned well,” he said, “They’re a good gun and they’re serving our purpose well.”

The Day has filed a Freedom of Information request for the body camera footage that was captured during the July incident. The department has refused to release the footage and on March 19, the Freedom of Information Commission held a hearing on The Day’s request. A decision is pending. The department’s attorney, Michael Collins, had said it has no issue releasing the body camera footage but was advised by the New London State’s Attorney’s Office not to do so until the suspect’s case is resolved.

Sig Sauer: Discharges are user error

Macek said he hasn’t “seen a straight answer as to why these discharges have occurred.”

Sig Sauer, in statements made after incidents with the P320, has maintained there’s nothing wrong with the gun and attributed the incidents to user error.

On July 31, after the Montville incident, Sig Sauer released a statement on its website that claimed the police officer’s gun had not been holstered properly.

“We have seen the news reporting of the incident involving a P320 discharge at the Montville (CT) Police Department,” the company said in the release, which included screenshots from the lobby video surveillance. “We are confident, as is the case in all instances, that when the factors and evidence are reviewed this will be proven to be an unintentional discharge as a result of inadvertent contact with the trigger, and that the pistol did not fire without a trigger pull.”

Sig Sauer in 2017 issued a recall on P320s for heavy triggers that caused some of the handguns to fire when dropped. That recall included “an alternate design that reduces the physical weight of the trigger, sear, and striker while additionally adding a mechanical disconnector,” according to the Sig Sauer website.

But reports of issues with the gun continued past 2017. An investigation by The Trace and Washington Post last year found that more than 100 people allege their P320 pistols discharged when they did not pull the trigger. At least 80 people were wounded in the shootings, which date to 2016 but also occurred as recently as 2022.

Macek said that while “there still hasn’t been an issue with them, and there’s only a couple of us that have them,” the Montville incident was one of the factors that has triggered the department to switch to the Glock 45.

“We sat down, discussed it, the chief looked at it and said ‘if there’s an issue, we’ll look at changing it,’ ”Macek said.

He said the new guns, which are included in the police department’s 2024-2025 budget request that will soon go to referendum, are currently being used by officers on a trial basis.

Sticking with the P320

Meanwhile, Groton Town Police Chief L.J. Fusaro said his department will continue to arm its officers with 9 mm P320s, which it purchased in 2016. Since then, the firearms have been sent back to Sig Sauer for the “heavy trigger” recall, and upgraded from using .45-caliber to 9mm ammunition.

Fusaro said the ability to modify the P320 is one of its upsides. It allows for modification to different barrel sizes, changing the grip on the gun and ease of attachments including dot sights and lights, he said.

“We have no intentions of changing them. They fit our needs,” Fusaro said, adding that research of any firearm will likely yield reports of some problems.

“We’re familiar with some of the reports,” he added. “We have done our own research independently, and have satisfied myself and our firearms instructors that our firearms are safe ― as much as firearms can be.”

He said officers should always exercise safe handling of firearms of any kind, he said, and make sure the trigger area and holster are free from any debris, and avoid brushing it with anything else on their belts, that could activate the trigger.

The Connecticut Police Officer Standards Training Council, which provides training and accreditation for departments in the state, has not taken a stance on the Sig Sauer P320s because it is out of the council’s purview, said Rick Green, director of communications for the state Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection.

He added that state police use Glock handguns.

Going smaller: departments moving from large calibers

Macek said other factors in the East Lyme department’s transition to new guns included the price of .40 caliber ammunition for its P229s, which is more costly than the 9mm ammunition.

The Norwich and Stonington police departments, which do not carry the P320, are in the process of transitioning to new 9 mm handguns.

Norwich officers have carried Smith and Wesson M&P .40-caliber handguns since about 2007, he said, and is switching to 9mm M&P handguns now. The department’s order for the guns has been delayed by Smith and Wesson’s move from Massachusetts to Maryville, Tenn, he said.

“I think a lot of PD’s are going to a lower caliber, because the research studies show that the latest 9mm ammunition is ballistically equal to the higher calibers, and what comes with that is less recoil and higher capacity magazines,” Norwich Lt. Christopher Merrill added.

He cited studies that showed that officers target shooting with 9mm’s miss their targets less which helps in high-stress situations.

Stonington Deputy Chief Todd Olson said officers in his department currently carry .45-caliber Glock 21’s, but will be seeking funding next year to switch to 9mm Glock 17’s, 45’s or 47’s.

“We will be trading in our Glock 21’s toward the purchase of the new firearms,” he added.

Waterford and New London police said they currently carry Glock 9mm handguns, and have indicated no plans to change them.

d.drainville@theday.com