CRPC Finds Murders Committed With Glock "Switches" are Very Rare

“Glock switch” images from ATF, public domain.  

Murders committed with handguns patterned after the extremely successful Glock line of pistols, equipped with “Glock switches”, are extremely rare, according to research done by the Crime Prevention Research Center (CPRC). The research was published on May 27, 2026.

No database of cases where “Glock switches” are used to murder people is maintained by the federal government . The CPRC did what they characterize as “an exhaustive search” for incidents where such a “Glock switch” was used to murder people, from 2021 through most of May, 2026.  They found 20 incidents where 43 people were killed over the more than five years studied.

Every murder is a tragedy. However, the number of murders committed with “Glock switches” is a tiny blip in the overall number of murders in the USA, over the five years examined by the CPRC.  The CPRC carefully and correctly states they may have missed some murders committed with “Glock switches”. It is the nature of crimes that some are not detected. It is the nature of the media that some events are not reported in a way which is easily found. The demonization of these devices works to insure most known events are reported.

Handguns do not make good automatic weapons. They are more difficult to master than rifles or shotguns, even  when one shot is fired for every trigger pull. The yare much more difficult to control on full auto, especially a full auto with a high cyclic rate of fire. With modifications, expert users can use them effectively, with practice. Machine pistols, as they are called, have not been a popular item with military services because of these limitations.

“Glock switches” take an excellent handgun design and transform it into a bad machine pistol. As noted by the CPRC, the “Glock switches” are dangerous to the user and to everyone near the user, including the user’s allies and confederates. “Glock switches” override the handguns disconnector, allowing the handgun to fire before it is fully locked. The difficulty of controlling a handgun in full auto, with an extreme cyclic rate, makes the danger of shooting in a direction which is not desired, a real possibility. This may be a reason the “Glock switches” are not used more commonly.

CRPC notes the total number of murders committed from 2021 – 2024 are about 80,657 murders in the USA, according the the FBI. The numbers for 2025 have not been officially released. Of those from 2021-2024, we know 29 were committed with “Glock switches”.  It is impossible to know if more or fewer murders would have been committed without the “Glock switches” being used. It is plausible, perhaps likely, the use of the switches prevented some murders because of the difficulty and danger of use, and the inherent lack of accuracy with such devices. If the first shot is on target, it is likely the second and following shots are not on target.  The homicide rate in the USA has been falling since 2021. The murder rate in the USA is at an historic low, probably the lowest ever recorded in the USA.

As mentioned in the CPRC article, these devices are mostly used by criminal gangs. Most of the murders appear to be during gang wars. “Glock switches” are already illegal to produce or own for nearly all people in the United States. Only licensed machine gun manufacturers, law enforcement, and the military have the ability to legally possess them.

Analysis: The focus on “Glock switches” is another attempt at creating a crises where none exists. The purpose appears to be to pass legislation to make items which are already illegal to own, double or triple illegal. The desired effect seems to be to ban or make illegal ordinary Glock pistols. Glock type pistols may be the most popular pistol in American society, perhaps in the world.

Those who wish to disarm the population have never been worried about logic, facts, or cost/benefit ratios. Most people still value logic, facts, and cost/benefit ratios. The CPRC article sheds light on a subject primarily shrouded in myth and emotion. It is likely the emotion based laws against Glock pistols will run into difficulties as they are challenged in the courts. Commonly owned firearms which are used for legal purposes are protected by the Second Amendment. Glock pistols are common. They are overwhelmingly used for legal purposes.

©2026 by Dean Weingarten: Permission to share is granted when this notice and link are included.

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