Obviously, there are circumstances for which a handgun, a rifle, a shotgun or even one of these firearms with high capacity magazines are preferred for self-defense.
Also, obviously, if you are a hunter with a 30-30 and that is the only gun you have, that is the preferred gun for whatever circumstance impells self-defense. Most discussions I've seen assume a circumstance and argue for a preferred weapon. Most self-defense circumstances (other than at home) don't allow a choice to be made -- one chooses for a general circumstance such as having a concealed firearm out in public. In short-range combat, there is reason to prefer shotguns -- remember Griff's message of 27 Nov 2006 forwarded again below and review the article at the link (still good) of the Army report supplied. Phil ----- Forwarded message from [EMAIL PROTECTED] ----- Date: Mon, 27 Nov 2006 14:00:35 -0500 From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Reply-To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subject: Army Lawyer on use of shotguns in combat To: Firearmsregprof@lists.ucla.edu The October 1997 issue of the Army Lawyer has an interesting legal review of the use of shotguns by the US military. Especially germane to civilian firearm laws is the discussion of the effectiveness of shotguns versus assault firearms andsubmachine guns at close quarters. <http://jagcnet.army.mil/JAGCNETINTERNET/HOMEPAGES/AC/ARMYLAWYER.NSF/c8 2df279f9445da185256e5b005244ee/6ae1de28fab6310685256e5b0054ec6b/ $FILE/Article%202.pdf> Page 20: "...British examination of its malaya experience determined that, to a range of thirty yards (27.4 meters), the probability of hitting a man- sized target with a shotgun was superior to that of all other weapons. The probability of hitting the intended target with an assault rifle was one in eleven. It was one in eight with a submachine gun firing a five-round burst. Shotguns had a hit probability ratio twice as good as rifles..." It seems to me that many assault weapon and handgun bans, and other firearm laws are based on implicit theories of lethality derived from the media rather than actual empirical evidence of lethality and effectiviness of firearms in combat. > Can anyone please point me to a good discussion of the > advantages and disadvantages of shotguns vs. handguns for self- defense? > The more specific the cite, the better. Many thanks, > > Eugene > _______________________________________________ > To post, send message to Firearmsregprof@lists.ucla.edu > To subscribe, unsubscribe, change options, or get password, see http://lists.ucla.edu/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/firearmsregprof > > Please note that messages sent to this large list cannot be viewed as private. Anyone can subscribe to the list and read messages that are posted; people can read the Web archives; and list members can (rightly or wrongly) forward the messages to others. > > _______________________________________________ To post, send message to Firearmsregprof@lists.ucla.edu To subscribe, unsubscribe, change options, or get password, see http://lists.ucla.edu/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/firearmsregprof Please note that messages sent to this large list cannot be viewed as private. Anyone can subscribe to the list and read messages that are posted; people can read the Web archives; and list members can (rightly or wrongly) forward the messages to others.
