Röhm Gesellschaft, often referred to as RG, is a German brand of firearms and related shooting equipment. RG developed as a diversification of Röhm GmbH in the 1950s. After 1968, RG Industries was established as a US division in

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

and operated until 1986. In 2010, the RG brand was acquired by

Umarex Umarex Sportwaffen GmbH & Co. KG is a German manufacturer of air guns (including Umarex air pistols such as the Beretta Elite II), tear gas, tear-gas and signal pistols, paintball markers under the RAM brand and airsoft guns, based in Arnsberg, No ...

GmbH & Co. KG. Röhm's RG-14 handgun, used in an assassination attempt on then US President

Ronald Reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan ( ; February 6, 1911June 5, 2004) was an American politician, actor, and union leader who served as the 40th president of the United States from 1981 to 1989. He also served as the 33rd governor of California from 1967 ...

, was referred to in 1981 as a

Saturday night special Saturday night special is a colloquial term in the United States and Canada for inexpensive, compact, small-caliber handguns made of poor quality metal. Sometimes known as junk guns, some states define these guns by means of composition or mate ...

, a cheaply manufactured firearm of perceived low quality, believed at the time to be favored by criminals.

History

Röhm RG-14 Reagan attempted assassination gun

In the early 1950s, Röhm GmbH of Sontheim/Brenz, which was traditionally focused on the production of chucking tools, diversified its product line and began to produce gas alarm guns,

flare gun A flare gun, also known as a Very pistol or signal pistol, is a large-bore handgun that discharges flares, blanks and smoke. The flare gun is typically used to produce a distress signal. Types The most common type of flare gun is a Very (s ...

starting pistol A starting pistol or starter pistol is a blank handgun that is fired to start track and field races, as well as competitive swimming races at some meets. Starter guns cannot fire real ammunition without first being extensively modified: Blank ...

s and handguns. Röhm's product line of firearms was primarily established under the brand name ''RG''. Following importation limits imposed on handguns by the 1968 Gun Control Act, RG established a factory in Miami in the 1970s under the name RG Industries. The Miami factory produced revolvers, automatic pistols, and

derringer A derringer is a small handgun that is neither a revolver nor a semi/ fully automatic pistol. It is not to be confused with mini-revolvers or pocket pistols, although some later derringers were manufactured with the pepperbox configuration. ...

s in

.22 LR The .22 Long Rifle or simply .22 LR or 22 (metric designation: 5.6×15mmR) is a long-established variety of .22 caliber rimfire ammunition originating from the United States. It is used in a wide range of rifles, pistols, revolvers, smooth ...

.25 ACP The .25 ACP ( Automatic Colt Pistol) (6.35×16mmSR) is a semi-rimmed, straight-walled centerfire pistol cartridge introduced by John Browning John Moses Browning (January 23, 1855 – November 26, 1926) was an American firearm designe ...

, .32 S&W, and

.38 Special The .38 Special, also commonly known as .38 S&W Special (not to be confused with .38 S&W), .38 Smith & Wesson Special, .38 Spl, .38 Spc, (pronounced "thirty-eight special"), or 9x29mmR is a rimmed, centerfire cartridge designed by Smith & ...

. The Miami factory ceased operations in 1986. In 2010, Röhm GmbH sold their firearms manufacturing business to

Arnsberg Arnsberg (; wep, Arensperg) is a town in the Hochsauerland county, in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is the location of the Regierungsbezirk Arnsberg administration and one of the three local administration offices of the Hoch ...

Litigation in the United States

Police officer

Thomas Delahanty Thomas K. Delahanty (born c. 1935) is an American retired policeman who served in the Metropolitan Police Department of the District of Columbia. He was one of the people who were wounded during the assassination attempt on U.S. President Ronal ...

was shot by John Hinckley, Jr. with a Röhm revolver during his failed assassination attempt on President Ronald Reagan in 1981. Delahanty later sued Röhm, arguing that small, inexpensive guns serve no purpose except for crime, and thus that the company should be held responsible. The suit was subsequently rejected by the District of Columbia Court of Appeals in a suit that has served as case law for other similar product liability cases.Delahanty v. Hinckley, 564 A.2d 758 (D.C.App. 1989), judgment hosted by Carnegie Mellon Universitybr>here
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In 1985, ''Kelley vs. RG Industries'' was filed over a 1982 shooting in which Olen J. Kelley, a grocery clerk, was shot in the chest with an RG firearm.

Firearms Made by Röhm

Derringers

RG-15 RG-16 RG-17

Revolvers

RG-10 RG-14 RG-23 RG-30 RG-31 RG-35 RG-38 RG-39 RG-40 RG-57 RG-63 RG-66

Automatic pistols

RG-25 RG-26 RG-42

References

External links

*
''Röhm''
at Muzzle.de {{DEFAULTSORT:Rohm (Rg) Revolvers of Germany Firearm manufacturers of Germany Firearm manufacturers of the United States