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City staff recommends emergency purchase of Glock 47 pistols after reported P320 safety concerns
Summary
City staff told the Winter Haven City Commission they recommend an emergency purchase of 120 Glock 47 duty pistols after national reports of unintended discharges with the SIG Sauer P320; staff said funds exist in the police budget but no formal vote was recorded in the transcript.
City staff recommended the city proceed with an emergency purchase of 120 Glock 47 9mm duty pistols to replace SIG Sauer P320-style pistols currently in use, citing national reports of unintended discharges and agency bans on the P320 platform. The recommendation, presented to the Winter Haven City Commission, said the purchase can be covered from existing police department budget funds and that procurement as an emergency purchase would speed delivery.
The recommendation matters because staff called the reported unintended discharges a direct risk to officer and public safety and said several large law enforcement entities have stopped using the P320 platform. A staff presenter cited a notice from the Florida Municipal Insurance Trust summarizing concerns documented by an FBI ballistic research facility and said Department of Homeland Security, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and U.S. Customs and Border Protection have banned use of the firearm.
Staff said they identified the Glock 47 as a suitable replacement, noting prior departmental use of Glock pistols, the platform’s three passive safeties, and compatibility with existing equipment such as Axon body-camera-triggering holsters. The vendor Lew’s Police Distributors was named as a source able to supply firearms at $732 each and provide compatible holsters that work with the department’s body-camera system. The presenter said the quoted unit price for 120 weapons equals $87,840 and that the department estimated a total replacement cost at $104,791, with any proceeds from recycling retired weapons applied back to the purchase.
Staff characterized the item as an officer-safety emergency and said, once ordered, delivery and integration would take several months. The transcript records no formal motion or recorded vote on the purchase during the meeting. The presenter said no unintended discharge incidents had occurred locally but that other agencies had experienced accidental discharges, including some with fatal outcomes.
Discussion only: the transcript shows staff presented the safety concerns, vendor pricing and timeline and recommended emergency procurement. Direction/assignment: staff recommended proceeding with emergency purchase; the transcript records that recommendation but does not record a formal commission vote or an approved purchase order during the session. Formal action: none recorded in the transcript.
