When do police use shotguns

While some departments will trust a rookie with an AR, mastery of the shotgun is de rigueur for all officers. If you do not feel comfortable with the shotgun, practice with dummy rounds for loading and unloading.

Find range time with an instructor to hone your skills. This will vary with the ammunition, barrel length of the gun, and choke size cylinder-bore in a police gun. Test your shotgun and ammo at various target distances to see how your gun patterns. To paraphrase master trainer Clint Smith of Thunder Ranch, a handgun is for fighting your way back to your long gun. Not everyone has a police rifle. We cannot take a shotgun with us on every call. But because it greatly increases our lethality quotient in an armed confrontation, a shotgun should be carried when it is tactically appropriate for the situation and need is apparent.

Randall is a twenty-three-year veteran officer of a mid-size Florida police department. While I agreed with him, I mentioned the similarity of the Benelli shotgun that I was currently carrying. He was puzzled for a moment until I pointed out that my semi-auto Benelli M-1 could hold nine rounds of. I then explained that I knew several officers including me who could fire that Benelli fast enough to empty all nine rounds into the target in about two seconds.

That meant we could fire 81 rounds of near 9mm ammunition in less than three seconds. In a comparison of fire power and speed, that shotgun was faster than any sub-gun I had ever used or knew of. My point is that in a CQB range, the shotgun loaded with heavy buckshot is absolutely the most devastating firearm in the police inventory. The argument against using buckshot has always been that as range increases, the pattern becomes larger and therefore misses may occur.

While I agree, I also recognize that there are circumstances where the ranges will certainly be close, such as during building clearings or raids into small confined structures. At close range, the shotgun delivers the most bang for the buck and should not be overlooked as an option.

The default weapon assigned to the entry team is usually an M-4 or an MP Regardless, I always choose to take the Benelli instead. A few of the younger SWAT officers noticed this and asked about it. I explained that I would always choose the shotgun when going into very close quarters. It may not be as sexy as the sub-guns, but it certainly does the job and is my first choice in very close quarters.

While the technology for the delivery of stun bags took a few years to become accurate, the shotgun has always been a consistent delivery system. Consequently, many agencies have turned their entire shotgun inventory into less lethal weapons. One of the primary principles of delivering less lethal munitions is that the officer delivering the stun-bag, should never be left without a lethal cover officer.

The reason for this is simple: if the suspect suddenly attacks the officer, he will be left unable to protect himself in a deadly force situation. So why not equip the lethal cover officer with a shotgun loaded with buckshot?

At the ranges that the less lethal munition will likely be fired, the buckshot will be devastating and the pattern controllable. We generally consider a patrol rifle to be a firearm that fires a rifle cartridge in. Some agencies fill this role with pistol caliber carbines such as an MP-5 or a Beretta Storm. The same can be said for a shotgun loaded with rifled slugs. A 12 gauge, 1 oz. While rifle sights are preferred for firing slugs, I have found that 50 yard hits are realistic, even with a simple bead sight.

If the officer finds himself with the potential for a mid-range gunfight, he is trained in the option of select loading a slug into the shotgun, using the appropriate deadly force at greater ranges.

The following is a supporting document for a security company: Documentary proof of registration with SIRA. The following are supporting documents for training in the use of firearms; theatrical, film or television production; game ranger and business in hunting: A certified copy of an accreditation certificate The surname and identify numbers of all trainers in a business Motivation to substantiate the application.

The licence, which is issued in terms of this section, namely the licence to possess a firearm for business purposes, is valid for five years , unless it is cancelled or terminated in terms of the Firearms Control Act, Additional licence A person may apply for additional licences in respect of sections 13, 14, 15, 16 and 16A.

The following requirements for additional licences must be met: The applicant must reside at the same premises as the holder of the licence. The applicant must comply with all requirements for the issuing of the licence to possess the respective firearm. The additional licence forms part of the maximum number of firearms a person may license in terms of the respective categories. The LC9 is a favorite among law enforcement for their personal off-duty weapon. At just six inches and 17 ounces, it is one of the smallest options on the list.

It is an update of its predecessor to allow for 9mm capability. Officers felt the. The original M was designed in and was the standard sidearm of the US military from to Over this time period, close to 3 million Ms were made. It is. Although the Beretta M9 replaced it as the standard military sidearm, it is still favored by law enforcement agencies around the country.

Remington Arms, which was founded in , is the oldest American gun manufacturer still in business. This is why law enforcement officers across the nation go to Remington for their shotgun needs. One of the most favored shotguns is the Remington One of the reasons it is so heavily favored is they take the quality of their law enforcement firearms seriously. Law enforcement shotguns and rifles are assembled by the same group of employees in a separate section of the factory.

Each gun then undergoes a 23 station check to ensure every component is up to standard. The Colt M4 Carbine is not generally your everyday law enforcement weapon, although some departments now carry them in their patrol cars.

This gun is mainly for SWAT divisions who face some of the most dangerous situations and criminals a cop can face. This gun was designed for soldiers who needed an assault rifle that performed well at close range. It was designed as a shorter, lighter, and more mobile version of the M This gas-operated gun has a both a single fire and automatic option. It also offers custom add-on capabilities like scopes, lasers, and night vision devices.

This is a great option for law enforcement agencies to keep on hand for when the worst case scenario unfolds. Anyone who plans to enter a career in criminal justice should be familiar with these ten firearms.