Commonly Carried Sidearm Banned From Washington State Criminal Justice Training Facilities

SIG Sauer P320 9mm Pistol | Source:TexasWarhawk, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons

Note: This story was withheld from publication by another outlet and has been archived here.

SEATTLE, WA— The SIG Sauer P320, one of the most carried sidearms by the U.S. military and police forces all over the country, has been permanently banned from use at facilities managed by the Washington State Criminal Justice Training Commission (WSCJTC), citing reports that the firearm can discharge when not triggered.

As reported by King 5, Monica Alexander, WSCJTC executive director, told reporters, “My position has to be safety because we know so much now that if I make a different decision, I don’t feel like I’m being responsible.” The use of the firearm at WSCJTC facilities was halted in October pending the results of a task force investigation into claims that the P320 was the cause of an “uncommanded discharge” by a recruit at a Spokane firing range.

No one was injured in this incident, but given the firearm’s accidental discharge record, which reportedly has led to 80 injuries as of April 2023, according to The Washington Post , with police officers numbering among the injured. The Post reported that at least 33 officers at 18 separate law enforcement agencies were injured in accidental P320 discharges dating to 2016.

Former Virginia deputy Marcie Vadnais, whose career ended with an accidental discharge from a P320 in 2018, told King5, “It’s literally like setting a ticking time bomb wherever it’s sitting waiting for it to go off.” Vadnais suffered a severe thigh injury and needed multiple surgeries.

Washington State Police Departments using the Sig Sauer P320 may want to rethink it, ASAP.

As King 5 Investigators reports, this particular gun is one wrong movement away from killing an Officer.@CJIngalls at @K5Investigators pic.twitter.com/mYLhhgl8z3

— Future 42 (@future42org) February 16, 2025

SIG Sauer denied the P320 is capable of firing without a trigger pull in a letter to WaPo, writing in part,

“These reports, among others, support three conclusions. (1) Unintentional discharges are not uncommon amongst both law enforcement and civilians, (2) improper or unsafe handling is one of the most common causes of unintentional discharges, and (3) unintentional discharges occur with several types of firearms and are not unique to the P320.”

The company added, “Despite years of litigation and extensive discovery, no one, including plaintiffs’ ‘experts’, have ever been able to replicate a P320 discharging without a trigger pull,” and goes on to state that the P320 does conform to all applicable U.S. standards for safety. “The SIG Sauer P320 model pistol is among the most tested, proven, and successful handguns in small arms history.”

Despite the categoric denial from SIG, the issue has become so well known that it was recently a topic of discussion on the Top-100 ranked Unsubscribe Podcast featuring firearms experts, veterans, and former law enforcement officers.

WATCH:

Firearm expert turned Congressional candidate Brandon Herrera noted during a conversation comparing them to Glock firearms, “It's just like a known thing now that happens.” He added, “I don't dislike SIG like, I have a couple of their guns and like it's you know a perfectly acceptable gun but let's just not pretend like that's not a f***ing prevalent issue.”

Co-host Nic aka “The Fat Electrician,” an Army Reserve Veteran and historian, cited recent videos “where it's like a cop just like literally talking to somebody and his gun just goes off and what the F*** in the holster… completely holstered gun and he's like talking and it's just like security cam footage and the gun just goes off.” Starting the co-hosts and guests riffing on SIG, he quipped that to Herrera who noted other gunmakers were “half a century behind” Glock, “you guys laugh but SIG figured out how to make him shoot themselves so its a real innovator.”

According to reporting from King5, WSCJTC estimates that approximately 10% of Washington officers carry SIG P320s, with documentation revealing it to be standard issue for the Bellevue Police Department, Burlington Police Department, and Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office. These jurisdictions could see a significant expense to rearm, retrain, and resupply their personnel. Kevin McCarty, a spokesman for the Kitsap County Sheriff’s Office, told the outlet they are already investigating a new handgun to transition to.

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