Attorney General Tong to Ruger Over RXM Pistol Safety Risks: 'I Will Not Hesitate to Enforce the Law'

Press Releases 11/10/2025 Attorney General Tong to Ruger Over RXM Pistol Safety Risks: "I Will Not Hesitate to Enforce the Law" Machine Gun Conversion Devices Enable Ruger Pistols to Become Illegal, Fully Automatic Weapons (Hartford, CT) - In a letter today to Southport-based gun manufacturer Sturm, Ruger & Co., Attorney General William Tong raised grave public safety concerns regarding the company's semi-automatic pistols that can be easily converted using machine gun conversion (MCD) devices into illegal fully automatic weapons as fast or faster than those deployed by the military. The letter cites new authority granted to the Office of the Attorney General this year through the Connecticut Firearms Industry Responsibility Act, which permits the state to bring civil enforcement actions against gun manufacturers, distributors, marketers and retailers who fail to implement reasonable controls to prevent the sale of firearms to straw purchasers, firearm traffickers, individuals prohibited from possessing firearms under state or federal law or individuals the firearm industry member has reasonable cause to believe intend to use it for a crime or to cause harm to themselves or others. The statute specifically requires the industry to enact reasonable controls to prevent the sale or distribution of a firearm product designed in a manner that is reasonably foreseeable to promote conversion of a legal firearm into an illegal firearm. The letter also cites authority under the Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act. "Ruger is on notice. They know, we know, and criminals know that their RXM pistol can be easily converted to an illegal, lethal fully automatic weapon. They can modify their product to be safer, or they can continue to profit from crime and violence and answer to a lawsuit," said Attorney General Tong. Machine gun conversion devices are a threat to public safety in Connecticut. In 2023 (the latest full year for which complete data is available), the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives traced 31 such devices in Connecticut in connection to law enforcement investigations. The Hartford Police Department reported recovering 53 machine gun conversion devices. Pistols transformed by these devices have shown up across Connecticut in public parks, residential neighborhoods, city streets, and a hospital. Gun safety advocates Everytown for Gun Safety have compiled a list of numerous violent incidents in Connecticut connected to the machine gun conversion devices, including: -In 2023, the devices were used by attackers to ambush and murder two men on a front porch in Hartford. -In 2024 in Hartford, 20-year-old mother and her four-month-old son were shot and killed by a man with a pistol equipped with an MCD. Another person was also shot and injured. -A man was injured and gunfire struck nearby apartment buildings in a New Haven shooting committed with two pistols, one modified to fire as a machine gun. -A man was shot in the back while sitting in his Bridgeport kitchen, collateral damage from a gang shooting using an MCD equipped handgun. -In a Hartford raid, police recovered 6,363 bags of fentanyl, 1 kilogram of cocaine, 119 grams of crack cocaine, and sixteen handguns, including three modified with MCDs to fire automatically. In the face of lawsuits, it has been reported that Glock will discontinue certain pistol models and update modifications to new pistol models to make it more difficult to attach conversion devices. A second company, Shadow Systems, is expected to follow suit. In contrast, Ruger continues to highlight the ease of which its pistols can be modified. Noting serious concerns with Ruger's design and marketing practices, the letter seeks a statement from Ruger regarding its plans for the RXM, and asks that the company preserve for future production all documents related to the conversion of its semiautomatic handguns into automatic weapons, use of its converted weapons in violent crime, marketing materials, financial materials, their knowledge of Glock's actions, awareness of their legal responsibilities and more. "If the RXM can be easily converted to a machine gun by the attachment of an MCD, and videos my Office has seen indicate that it can, Ruger's pursuit of profits over safety may be in violation of FIRA and CUTPA, by failing to enact reasonable controls to prevent the sale of legal firearms that can be easily converted to illegal firearms," Attorney General Tong states in the letter. "I have grave concerns with Ruger's design and marketing practices, and I will not hesitate to enforce our laws when they are violated," he states further. Assistant Attorney General Rebecca Quinn, Legal Intern Grace Craven and Deputy Associate Attorney General Michael Wertheimer, Chief of the Consumer Protection Section are assisting the Attorney General in this matter. Twitter: @AGWilliamTong Facebook: CT Attorney General Media Contact: Elizabeth Benton [email protected] Consumer Inquiries: 860-808-5318 [email protected] Twitter Facebook Email Print