Selecting the Duty Weapon:
Is Caliber the Key?

Author: Evan Marshall, October 1997

Evan Marshall retired from the Detroit Police Department with the rank of Sergeant after twenty years of service. His assignments included: Crime Scene Investigation, Tactical Unit, Homicide, and the Special Response Team. He holds a Masters Degree in Criminal Justice, and a Bachelors Degree in History. He has written in excess of 1,000 articles and is the co-author of two best selling books, "HANDGUN STOPPING POWER-THE DEFINITE STUDY" and "STREET STOPPERS."

When I graduated from the Detroit Police Academy in 1970, my choice of an on-duty handgun was a simple one: the issue .38 Special revolver with which we had qualified. While Detroit did allow a wide variety of privately-owned revolvers, most new officers could not afford the purchase of both a smaller revolver for off-duty and a more powerful one for on-duty use. The standard procedure for recruits was to go to a local gun shop and put a short-barreled .38 Special revolver on lay-a-way. We could then pay it off by the time we graduated and have an appropriate off-duty weapon. A short time later, I noticed a copy of a gun magazine from several years earlier that featured an article on the "ultimate" police revolver--the .41 Magnum. This caliber was offered in a large frame, fixed sight revolver that looked like a .38 Special on growth hormones! The standard load was a 210 grain lead semi-wadcutter bullet loaded to 950 feet per second (fps). The moderate velocity load offered good accuracy, modest recoil, and minimal muzzle flash. To me it sounded like the ideal police service weapon. I bought one and carried it for years. In those days, however, the selection of a proper service revolver was quite limited compared to the number of weapons now available for consideration.

It also needs to be pointed out that police handgun training was in its infancy. In fact, I had qualified on a bullseye target shooting my double action revolver in the single action mode! Tactical concepts were non existent and attempts to learn something from the line of duty deaths of police officers was met with the argument that it was inappropriate to second guess the actions of another police officer. My argument was that if we couldn't learn anything from the line of duty death of a police officer, he died for nothing. My position, of course, was not the traditional one, so it was extremely difficult to obtain accurate information.

I, and a couple of other liked-minded officers, began to create tactical courses which by today's standards were extremely crude, but for the time were extremely radical. We practiced engaging multiple targets from nontraditional distances. We replaced the drop pouches, which were considered state of the art at that time, with loops when we realized it was virtually impossible to juggle six rounds at once under stress. When the first speed loaders arrived on the scene we tried them even though they were intended for Practical Pistol Course (PPC) competition and not designed to withstand the rigors of the street. We also adopted the unheard of practice of carrying a second gun. The .38 snub I had purchased upon graduation from the academy proved ideal for this purpose. With a bobbed hammer it rode comfortably in the back pocket of my uniform pocket during spring, summer, and fall. During the cold winter months it rode in the outside pocket of my heavy uniform winter coat where it was easier to access than my duty weapon that rode in the required flap holster.

My department started to consider approval of privately-owned semiautomatic pistols in the early 1970's. Approval was delayed for a couple of years, however, because the majority of the firearms' instructors considered pistols to be unreliable, inaccurate, and unsafe. When a particular nine-shot pistol finally was approved, we were restricted to full metal jacketed rounds. While hollow point ammunition was available in this caliber, the department hierarchy had tightened up ammunition regulations. They restricted department personnel to either all lead or full metal jacketed ammunition, having decided that hollow points were inhumane. With these restrictions in place I was content to carry factory semi-wadcutter lead rounds in my .41 Magnum duty weapon and a heavy powder charge behind a hard cast 158 grain semi-wadcutter bullet in the snub.

With the introduction of the high capacity 9mm pistol, and its subsequent approval by the department, many of those who had ignored the semi automatic pistol gave it a second look. I had suffered a serious gun injury to my hand while on duty and found that I could no longer manipulate a speed loader with the dexterity I formally possessed. I purchased one of the new high capacity pistols and started to look for ammunition that would meet department regulations. I finally came across a German round that covered a significant hollow cavity with a thin copper cap that, on casual examination, looked like a standard full metal jacketed round. I chronagraphed it out of my high capacity 9mm at an average 1,325 fps. It expanded impressively in various test mediums while working quite well against auto glass and sheet metal. While I didn't shoot anyone with this load, one of my officers did. The round expanded to .70 caliber in soft tissue without hitting bone, and didn't exit the armed felon the officer had shot.

I carried this load in the pistol and the two spare magazines on the front of my uniform belt, while a single magazine pouch contained a third spare magazine loaded with KTW armor-piercing ammunition. Incorrectly identified as "cop killer bullets," this load was manufactured by a friend of mine who was extremely careful to whom he sold the ammunition. While such loads are not commonly used in law enforcement, when they are needed, the need is extreme and urgent.

The high capacity 9mm pistol I carried both on and off duty was factory stock, except for a tritium front sight insert. I have never been a fan of rear night sights finding it was too easy to get confused as to which was the front and which was the rear in dim light situations. I found that with a solid Weaver Stance the front night sight was adequate for the appropriate distances a pistol should be used. Several other writers suggested that this pistol smith or that one, could do a "super" action job on pistol. Frankly, I have never been a fan of modified duty weapons. First of all, my pistol was totally reliable when it came to ignition, feeding, and extraction. Second, from a Ransom Rest the pistol would shoot groups tighter than I could off-handed or from a Sand Bag Rest. Third, a police duty weapon is simply a tool that officers have a moral obligation to be skillful with, and modifications often fail to really add anything that is essential in such a weapon.

A number of years later, I was approached about joining the training staff of my department's SWAT Team. Detroit had to be the last big city in this country without such a team and ours was put into place in the middle 1980's. A different brand high capacity 9mm pistol was chosen along with a 9mm submachine gun, .223 caliber select fire rifles, shotguns, and sniper rifles. It was obvious that the roles assumed by such teams precluded the use of the department standard full metal jacketed ammunition. I put together a request for an exemption to their regulations, and was able to purchase and issue the appropriate hollow point offerings in the various caliber weapons we used.

While we were equipped with specialized weapons denied the rest of the department, I made it perfectly clear to the team that we would certainly find ourselves in situations where we were out-gunned. I taught them that the solution was not to request more powerful weapons, but to use superior tactics that would minimize if not fully negate the advantage such weapons provided our opponents. We might be deprived access to certain weapons, but careful training taught us to employ tactics that would allow us to solve the problem.

There were a few members of the team who were rather adamant in their position that the .45 ACP pistol was vastly superior to the current 9mm offerings. The only problem with this argument was that my collection of actual shooting data for almost two decades has failed to show a significant advantage by selecting the .45 ACP. I reminded them of my 1st commandment of gun fighting: "No intelligent man or woman should ever take a pistol to a gun fight with any degree of enthusiasm." Besides, the last thing we needed was another caliber in our ammunition supply.

For those readers that are not familiar with my efforts to collect actual shooting data, let me give you a little background. In the early 70's I was assigned to the Crime Scene Investigation Unit of the Detroit Police Department. My partner and I were assigned to the Northern District Criminal Investigation Section, which included Detroit's notorious 10th Precinct. While other crime scene personnel worked a wide variety of crime scenes, my partner and I spent most of our time at homicide or at officer-involved shooting scenes. One night we had responded to a scene where an officer had shot a felon six times with the "cutting edge" load back then--a .357 Magnum, 110 grain jacketed hollow point at an honest 1400 fps + from his six-inch barreled revolver. The felon had taken all six rounds in the thoracic cavity. He had been so impressed with its stopping power that he fought the police all the way to the hospital!

This, of course, was surprising because all the gun magazine pundits had promised us that this was the ultimate stopper. Obviously, there was a gap between theory and reality. Since I operated in a very real world of violence and carried a hand gun on a daily basis to protect myself and others, this was a problem that had to be resolved.

I decided that if we could collect enough actual shooting data, we might be able to predict with some degree of accuracy how a certain load might perform in the future. With a large enough data base we could make decisions based on reality, not on theory or how bullets performed in some artificial test medium, which bore little resemblance to human tissue, but how they worked on living, breathing humans who were bent on our destruction.

I resisted the effort to rely solely on the shooting data available through the Detroit Police Department, even though shootings are tragically common in my city. I did this simply because I felt the results could be discounted as a solely a regional phenomena . It was about this time that I started my career as a writer for a number of law enforcement and firearms publications. As I started to travel on article assignments for the magazines, I began to create a network of sources who would provide information on both officer-involved and criminal shootings. I developed a set of criteria for what constituted a stop, and created a check list of information needed so that I could evaluate shooting results.

I have to admit that I had no idea how long it would take to collect enough data so that I would feel comfortable sharing the results. Some critics who have criticized my data obviously have missed the point of my work. It was done to satisfy my curiosity and financed out of my pocket for the law enforcement community, and those who must rely on a handgun for personal protection. I should also point out that my findings have never been successfully challenged by anyone in the "scientific" community.

The criteria I established were a set of rules that I felt comfortable with. They are as follows:

• Only torso hits were included. I and co-researcher, Ed Sanow, found that it was unrealistic to include shootings where the victim was hit in a non vital area and then use that incident as proof of a particular rounds ineffectiveness.
• Multiple hits were also discarded. I just couldn't come up with a way to equate, for example, how three hits from a .380 ACP could be compared with two 2 hits from a .357 Magnum.
• A stop was defined as the assailant collapsing within 10 feet. If the perpetrator had been engaged in an assault, he or she would not be able to strike any more blows or fire any more shots, whether they struck their intended target or not.
• In order to include a shooting in my study, I had to have access to the officer-involved shooting files, autopsy or medical treatment reports, police reports, homicide reports and files, press accounts, and when possible, conversations with emergency room personnel.
• Recovered bullets were either personally examined and photographed by us, or we were provided with photographs of the bullets. Interestingly enough, there was often little correlation between the expansion of hollow points and the final result.
• Finally, a minimum of ten shootings were required before a load could be included in this study. Of course, I would like to have a lot more, but I had to start somewhere, and fortunately in most cases, I have significantly larger totals than that.

The collection of a data base of appropriate size was a difficult and time-consuming process for several reasons. First of all, it was self-financed, and police sergeants with seven children don't have much discretionary capitol. Second, there was a reluctance to share data because departments feared they would see themselves identified in gun magazines as the source of such sensitive material. It took almost a decade to develop a network of sources who trusted my discretion. Third, this was just one of many things that occupied my time including the completion of a masters degree and service as a scoutmaster.

It finally came into focus with the publication of "Handgun Stopping Power-The Definitive Study" published in the early 90's. This work is, in the opinion of many experts, still the most definitive study of the various stopping power theories, followed by the inclusion of what is the best way to determine what are appropriate loads to use for law enforcement/self-defense.

Let's take a look at the most current results from the street in the handgun caliber's most often used by law enforcement personnel. Feel free to draw your own conclusions from the data and I will share my own opinions with you as well. Perhaps we can find a common ground.

RESULTS FROM THE STREET

.380 ACP

The .380 ACP has been used in law enforcement for years as either a plain clothes/off-duty pistol or as a second gun. This caliber has seen a lot of attention from the ammunition manufacturers. There are some good performers in this caliber.

.38 SPECIAL-2" BARREL

For decades the short-barreled .38 Special revolver was the plain clothes and off-duty weapon of American police. In spite of the massive inroads made by semiautomatic pistols, these compact revolvers are still extremely popular in the second gun/off-duty role.

.38 SPECIAL-4" BARREL

The four-inch barreled, fixed sight .38 Special revolver was the police duty hand gun for decades. While the .357 Magnum made some inroads into its popularity, it was the adoption of the Beretta 9mm pistol by the US military that sounded its death knell. It offers good performance in a moderate recoil, proven design.

* NO LONGER MADE

.357 MAGNUM

The .357 Magnum was the first choice for decades by those officers who were dissatisfied with the performance levels of the available .38 Special loads. It was also the first choice of many highway patrol units who were concerned about penetration of motor vehicles. It has produced the best stopping power results of any handgun caliber.

9mm

The 9mm is a favorite weapon in law enforcement at the present time. This weapon is easy to fire, accurate, and reliable. Care should be given to selecting a model which can be handled safely.

.40 S&W

The .40 S&W has become the premiere law enforcement caliber. It serves as a bridge caliber, satisfying those who feel more comfortable with a bigger caliber than the 9mm and more bullets than the .45 ACP. It has started to produce excellent results and appears it will be the law enforcement round of the future replacing the .45ACP.

.45 ACP

The .45 Auto, of course, has an extremely large and emotional following. Unfortunately, much of this loyalty is tied to the alleged superiority of .45 ACP hard ball. I used to a believer in it too, until I started to collect actual shooting data and found that while there are some excellent loads in this caliber, the 230 grain full metal jacketed offering is not one of them, regardless of bullet design.

.45 COLT

The .45 Colt has seen only limited use in law enforcement primarily due to the introduction of large frame revolvers chambered in this caliber. It had seen use in those departments who allowed their officers to carry privately-owned, non magnum revolvers.

The recent violent confrontation in Los Angeles brought cries for more powerful handguns. While I can understand the reason for such demands, the facts of this case make it clear that handguns chambered for .45 ACP would have not performed any better against the heavy armor the two bank holdup men wore. If we examine carefully the best performers in the most popular semi-automatic pistol calibers, we can see that they vary by less than 5%. Anyone who thinks that the felon shot with a load that is producing one shot stops 96% of the time will collapse significantly faster than the felon shot with a load that produces one shot stops 91% of the time is in for a severe disappointment. Gravity can only pull a body to the ground so fast and no handgun round produces knock down power.

We need to remember that the three most important components of handgun stopping power are: bullet placement, bullet placement, and bullet placement. I carry a double action 9mm Beretta because I shoot it very well. The fact that I'm giving up five and four percentage points respectively by not carrying a .45 ACP or .40 S&W, has not caused me to suffer sleep deprivation.

We should remember that if we know we are going into harm's way, we should be equipped with an appropriate shoulder weapon. Handguns are last ditch, emergency weapons that are as much a badge of office as they are for our self-defense. I cannot see the value of giving up seven rounds of ammunition in my magazine to gain four percentage points of stopping power. The .45 ACP is an excellent caliber and I own several hand guns chambered for this round, but after 20+ years in law enforcement I've found that the 9mm meets my needs.

It should also be pointed out that the majority of ammunition R & D is and will be focused primarily on the .40 S&W, at least until the next super caliber comes along. There are a number of ammunition manufacturers that are producing new loads and bullet designs almost every day. All of them, of course, claim their load is the ultimate stopper and while some of them are working rather well, the one that appears to hold the most potential is the Quik Shok load from Triton Cartridge. Designed by Tom Burzinski, who gave us Hydra Shok and Star Fire bullets, it is a pre-stressed bullet that breaks into three pieces that go their separate ways causing tissue damage over a much broader area. Pre-production versions of this load worked extremely well in the controversial Strasbourg Tests. Of course, we'll have to wait to see how it works in actual use, but it looks extremely promising.

CONCLUSION

I am hopeful the information I have provided in this short article will assist you in selecting a handgun in which you have absolute confidence. In my opinion, it doesn't make much difference whether you select a 9mm, .40 caliber, a .357 caliber, or a .45 caliber as long a you use the proper ammunition. Any weapon of these calibers is adequate for law enforcement use. My advice is to select a weapon that you can fire most accurately given the different size, weights, and recoil of each weapon. I think the data I have provided makes that point very clear. I also urge you to buy a weapon that is safe to handle in our rough and tumble world and can be stored at home without any worry about the potential of an unintentional discharge by a child. Finally, for God's sake, learn how to handle the weapon safely and shoot accurately. In the final analysis, safety and being able to shoot the weapon accurately are the two most important aspects in the selection of a law enforcement handgun.

The National Executive Institute Associates Leadership Bulletin editor is Edward J. Tully. He served with the FBI as a Special Agent from 1962 to 1993. He is presently the Executive Director of the National Executive Institute Associates and the Major City Chiefs. You can reach him via e-mail at tullye@aol.com or by writing to 308 Altoona Drive, Fredericksburg, Virginia 22401