Aug 7, 2025 By Garrett Neese 3 min read

The Waynesburg Police Department will become the latest organization to move away from Sig Sauer P320 pistols after reports from around the country of the gun going off without the trigger being pulled.

At a special meeting Tuesday night, the council voted to spend up to $12,600 from the parking fund to purchase 13 FN 509 semi-automatic pistols, along with six sights. Quotes for the sights had yet to come back Tuesday, but the department would go with the lowest price of the two presented, Chief Billy Nichols said.

The Waynesburg department had been using the Sig Sauers for the past several years.

Police departments and agencies in several states have stopped using the guns in recent years after reports of defects.

A joint investigation in 2023 by the Washington Post and The Trace, a nonprofit outlet reporting on gun violence, found that more than 100 people claimed the P320 had unintentionally fired, resulting in at least 80 injuries.

In late July, the U.S. Air force Global Strike Command put use of the gun on hold after an airman at an Air Force base in Wyoming was killed by an accidental discharge from a M18, Sig Sauer’s military version of the P320.

Last week, the Houston Police Department halted use of the weapon after one of its officers sued Sig Sauer following his gun going off while he was directing traffic.

Local police academies have banned the gun from their ranges after the reports, Nichols said.

“Allegheny County Police Academy won’t even allow it on the property,” he said.

In a statement last month, Sig Sauer called the P320 “one of the safest, most advanced pistols in the world,” touting extensive testing by military and law enforcement.

“The P320 cannot, under any circumstances, discharge without the trigger first being moved to the rear,” the company said. “This has been verified through exhaustive testing by Sig Sauer engineers, the U.S. Military, several major federal and state law enforcement agencies, and independent laboratories.”

The company has faced several other lawsuits alleging the guns can improperly fire without a trigger pull, including one filed in federal court by a group of 22 plaintiffs in March.

When Nichols brought the issue to borough Solicitor Chris Simms last week, Simms advised Nichols to replace the guns as soon as possible for the potential liability. Because the amount would be close to the threshold needed for the council to seek bids, Simms recommended seeking council approval, Nichols said.

“He said he didn’t want to wait to bring this up at a regular meeting, because he wanted to show that we are trying to head this problem off,” Nichols said.

Looking at several quotes presented to the council, Nichols said the FN pistols, manufactured in Columbia, S.C., would be cheaper than the German-made HKs. The Los Angeles Police Department and Wake County (N.C.) Sheriff’s Department are among the departments using the FNs, Nichols said.

Council members backed the change.

“I would support your judgment on that, and I don’t feel that I’m qualified to have an opinion on what’s going to make sure that you and your guys go home at night,” Council Vice President William Harding told Nichols.

Nichols said it could be around a month before the department receives the new pistols. In the meantime, he said, the department’s firearms policy enables officers to carry a personally owned weapon if they prefer.