From: RustyBullethole, [EMAIL PROTECTED] >Kevlar only protects the torso. They had no dog, and shooting someone >intentionally in the leg at night is a very low percentage option. They had a dog - the handler was also granted anonimity. >Steve. I agree Steve, it takes a lot of skill to hit a target such as a leg or arm. Refering to the thread on MP5's, the following report from 1997 is probably part of the reason for the switch from revolvers to MP5's. """""In a survey of 23 incidents in England and Wales where marksmen used weapons, 66 per cent of rounds fired were wide of the target - the trunk of the body. In one incident an officer shot a colleague in the hand. In another a marksman shot himself in the leg and on a third occasion a civilian was hit in the leg by a stray bullet. The miss rate in the close-range encounters at 10 metres or less - the majority of incidents - was around 50 per cent. A number of the rounds hit hands or arms and many of the close-range misses hit the ground. The study was compiled by Supt Colin Burrows, of the Royal Ulster Constabulary on behalf of the Association of Chief Police Officers. The association is considering the findings, which may prompt changes. Officers are required to record a success rate of 70 per cent or above in shooting exercises to be accepted into specialist firearms squads. In close-range incidents officers are taught "instinctive, sense of direction shooting techniques" and use sights at longer ranges. The report said: "Officers often expressed disbelief that they had missed. There is clearly a divergence between training and operational performance." The association said the report showed a better miss rate than the rest of the world, which is around 80 per cent."""""" (I like that - "better miss rate"!!) >The intention when you shoot someone is to stop them, not execute >them. Shooting someone with the express intent to kill them is >very poor tactics in fact, because they may well still have the >time to kill you. At the tactical ranges involved you would stop them a whole lot better with a baton gun than a 9mm (the 9mm would of course kill them better). In some reports of the Falmouth shooting, it states that two shots were fired (a hit and a follow-up that missed?) - you can see a picture of the scene immediately after the shootng in the Electronic Telegraph archives, the soldiers body (or blood from it) is lying under a sheet beneath two street lamps. >Sorry, Rusty, but what you're saying just is not realistic. >Somebody threatens you with lethal force, you respond with >lethal force, that is the surest way to survive. We pay >police officers to protect the public, not to be sandbags. Put the Commando comic down for a moment Steve <G>, no-one would suggest that the officers should act as sandbags and yes their duty is to protect the public, however that "public" also includes the idiots who are lining up to be shot. Given the information gathered from previous "armed" encounters, it is not unreasonable to expect the police to be adjusting their tactics according to anticipated levels of threat. An airgun does not pose a lethal threat to someone in body armour/headgear. Rusty -- The reason for two shots is likely that the officer was taught to double tap the target which is a pretty common method of instruction. The information on shooting incidents would appear to be a strong argument against baton guns, as they are single shot. If you miss, you are in trouble! An air rifle most certainly _does_ represent a lethal threat to anyone it is pointed at. Arguing that the officer should have stood back and wait to have been shot is barmy IMO. Many air rifles are in the power range of a .22 rimfire, and the officer I assume was wearing armour that only covered his torso. How was he to know what the muzzle energy of the air rifle was? In any event this is all academic as the officer testified that it was dark and he could only identify it as a rifle. My point was merely that even if I knew for absolute certain that it was an air rifle, I would still have shot him. This was Falmouth after all, he could have just stepped off a ship from France with an 80 ft/lb air rifle for all that officer knew. Steve. Cybershooters website: http://www.cybershooters.org List admin: [EMAIL PROTECTED] ___________________________________________________________ T O P I C A The Email You Want. http://www.topica.com/t/16 Newsletters, Tips and Discussions on Your Favorite Topics
