Originally Posted by
WillBrink
I know some LEO who don't CCW at all off duty, and they are not from small podunk PDs either. I don't "get" that one, but their choice as they don't work at a PD that requires them to be armed off duty as policy.
You are more likely to run into people that you have arrested in the small town settings than in the big cities. Been there, done that, on both accounts. I carry a subcompact 90% of the time that I go out, then again, I also try to at least shoot at least a little bit each week to keep my skills as sharp as feezible. Many of our people only shoot during official trainings or qualifications.
That being said, I do not think that entirely shunning the use of larger, heavier calibers for LE use is wise. As Dr. Roberts has pointing out, if he ever returned to uniformed patrol he'd prefer the M&P .40 due to years of generally better terminal and barrier penetration effects. Officer Keith Borders demonstrated the value of using the heavier caliber when he pelted his attacker by bouncing .45acp Gold Dots off the pavement to hit the perp under a car. The 2008 FLETC vehicular shooting study showed that as you increase caliber size and weight, the pavement deflection terminal effects were considerably better. Further advantages are better destruction of internal bone structure, demonstrated by Dr. Lane and Ted Holland in the 1993 FBI wound ballistics study. Obviously, increasing caliber size is simply a "force increment".....not a force multiplier. The only force multiplier with service pistols is precision shooting to directly destroy key anatomical structures. I'll still be a bitter clinger to my larger caliber force increments, and ensure that I am better shot than the other guy.
Last edited by S. Galbraith; 04-28-13 at 09:01.
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