Mark Tyson
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Mich. Police Get Bigger Pistols
03/20/2004
Department Follows Larger Bullets Trend
By Joseph Deinlein, The Times Herald (Port Huron, Mich.
Officer Doug Decker didn't mind his old 9-mm Sig Sauer pistol.
But he's pleased with the new Glock .45-caliber guns the Port Huron Police Department will be phasing in by the end of this month.
Port Huron is one of the last departments in the Blue Water Area to move away from handguns that fire the smaller 9-mm rounds. The Michigan State Police began carrying .40-caliber guns about three years ago. The sheriff departments in St. Clair and Sanilac counties and many other local departments carry .40 caliber, too.
The trend has been toward .40- and .45-caliber bullets because the 9-mm rounds weren't good at stopping the bad guys, police said. They say larger rounds work better.
"Anything that gives us an advantage is a positive thing," Decker said.
Because the larger-caliber rounds can do more damage, some people worry what it means about society now that police are carrying them. While police departments, including several locally, are making use of less-lethal Tasers and pepper-ball guns, officers don't want to be out-gunned by criminals.
"It really puts agencies between a rock and a hard place," said Carollynne Jarvis, executive director of the Michigan Partnership to Prevent Gun Violence.
Changes in firepower
Police departments throughout the country carried .38-caliber revolvers until the 1960s, local police chiefs said. In the 1970s, many switched to .357-caliber Magnum revolvers. In the 1980s, departments moved to semi-automatic handguns because they could hold 15 bullets versus six shots in a revolver.
"The majority went to 9-mm," Richmond Police Chief Dennis Privette said.
But those guns weren't as good because they didn't pack the same punch as the .357.
Enter .40- and .45-caliber weapons.
"It takes less shots to stop a perpetrator, in theory," said Detective Scott Pike, who researched the new guns for Port Huron police.
Port Huron bought 72 Glocks for about $200 apiece, Pike said. That's after the department's 10- to 12-year-old Sig Sauers were used as trade-ins. The balance was paid for with drug forfeiture money, he said.
Knock-down power
The so-called knock-down power of larger-caliber guns is behind the trend, police and experts said.
Nine millimeter rounds are smaller bullets and move fast, said Ken Cooper, founder and director of Tactical Handgun Training of New York, who has 16 years of experience with police tactics and firearms.
"Because it's a smaller round, it goes right through the body, leaving no energy," he said.
Rounds of .40 and .45 caliber are slightly bigger, but move slower. Also, they typically have a hollow point, which makes the bullet expand like a mushroom when it hits a target, said Steven Robbins, Chesterfield Township police chief. That transfers more of the force into the target and reduces the risk of the bullets going through the target and injuring a bystander, he said.
More force means the bullet can do more damage. But Cooper said that doesn't mean one shot with a .45-caliber gun will stop every crook. That's why police officers go through hours of training.
"There is no magic bullet," he said. "Bigger bullets make bigger holes. Fine. But it's the training that makes the difference."
Local rationale
Many police in the Blue Water Area and across the state said they switched to larger rounds because criminals were carrying more powerful weapons.
"We switched simply because the cops were outgunned," said Sgt. Richard Hale, primary firearms instructor for the Michigan State Police.
St. Clair County Sheriff Dan Lane agreed.
His department moved from 9-mm weapons to .40-caliber Glocks about two years ago.
"In the last 13 years with the 9-mm, we found that some of the people we were dealing with have even larger caliber guns," he said. "If we ever have to use it, we want a gun with enough shot power to put a person down and eliminate that threat."
That rings especially true in rural areas. Croswell Police Chief David Hall said his officers face the possibility of having to handle crooks by themselves.
"Up here, your backup could be 40 to 50 minutes away," he said. "Having a larger caliber is to your advantage."
Not every police official agrees. Capac Chief Raymond Hawks said his officers carry a mix of 9 mm, .40 and .45 caliber. He carries a 9 mm and said it is the officer's ability to use the weapon that makes the difference.
"My theory is carry what you can shoot," he said. "My main concern is that they're accurate with what they carry."
Trend in society
While increasing their firepower, many area departments have bought less-lethal weapons, such as pepper-ball guns or Tasers. Such weapons can incapacitate a subject without killing them.
Marysville Police Chief Mark Thorner, whose department just ordered five Tasers, said such weapons are good alternatives to guns. But they aren't replacements.
"I've never had to shoot anyone in my career," he said. "That's good. But that doesn't mean that I'll leave my gun home tomorrow when I come to work."
Jarvis, with the Michigan Partnership to Prevent Gun Violence, said her organization is not against guns. But the trend of police carrying higher-caliber guns is worrisome because of what it means about society.
"We know the struggle police agencies have to protect their people," Jarvis said. "But look at the society we're building."
Mich. Police Get Bigger Pistols
03/20/2004
Department Follows Larger Bullets Trend
By Joseph Deinlein, The Times Herald (Port Huron, Mich.
Officer Doug Decker didn't mind his old 9-mm Sig Sauer pistol.
But he's pleased with the new Glock .45-caliber guns the Port Huron Police Department will be phasing in by the end of this month.
Port Huron is one of the last departments in the Blue Water Area to move away from handguns that fire the smaller 9-mm rounds. The Michigan State Police began carrying .40-caliber guns about three years ago. The sheriff departments in St. Clair and Sanilac counties and many other local departments carry .40 caliber, too.
The trend has been toward .40- and .45-caliber bullets because the 9-mm rounds weren't good at stopping the bad guys, police said. They say larger rounds work better.
"Anything that gives us an advantage is a positive thing," Decker said.
Because the larger-caliber rounds can do more damage, some people worry what it means about society now that police are carrying them. While police departments, including several locally, are making use of less-lethal Tasers and pepper-ball guns, officers don't want to be out-gunned by criminals.
"It really puts agencies between a rock and a hard place," said Carollynne Jarvis, executive director of the Michigan Partnership to Prevent Gun Violence.
Changes in firepower
Police departments throughout the country carried .38-caliber revolvers until the 1960s, local police chiefs said. In the 1970s, many switched to .357-caliber Magnum revolvers. In the 1980s, departments moved to semi-automatic handguns because they could hold 15 bullets versus six shots in a revolver.
"The majority went to 9-mm," Richmond Police Chief Dennis Privette said.
But those guns weren't as good because they didn't pack the same punch as the .357.
Enter .40- and .45-caliber weapons.
"It takes less shots to stop a perpetrator, in theory," said Detective Scott Pike, who researched the new guns for Port Huron police.
Port Huron bought 72 Glocks for about $200 apiece, Pike said. That's after the department's 10- to 12-year-old Sig Sauers were used as trade-ins. The balance was paid for with drug forfeiture money, he said.
Knock-down power
The so-called knock-down power of larger-caliber guns is behind the trend, police and experts said.
Nine millimeter rounds are smaller bullets and move fast, said Ken Cooper, founder and director of Tactical Handgun Training of New York, who has 16 years of experience with police tactics and firearms.
"Because it's a smaller round, it goes right through the body, leaving no energy," he said.
Rounds of .40 and .45 caliber are slightly bigger, but move slower. Also, they typically have a hollow point, which makes the bullet expand like a mushroom when it hits a target, said Steven Robbins, Chesterfield Township police chief. That transfers more of the force into the target and reduces the risk of the bullets going through the target and injuring a bystander, he said.
More force means the bullet can do more damage. But Cooper said that doesn't mean one shot with a .45-caliber gun will stop every crook. That's why police officers go through hours of training.
"There is no magic bullet," he said. "Bigger bullets make bigger holes. Fine. But it's the training that makes the difference."
Local rationale
Many police in the Blue Water Area and across the state said they switched to larger rounds because criminals were carrying more powerful weapons.
"We switched simply because the cops were outgunned," said Sgt. Richard Hale, primary firearms instructor for the Michigan State Police.
St. Clair County Sheriff Dan Lane agreed.
His department moved from 9-mm weapons to .40-caliber Glocks about two years ago.
"In the last 13 years with the 9-mm, we found that some of the people we were dealing with have even larger caliber guns," he said. "If we ever have to use it, we want a gun with enough shot power to put a person down and eliminate that threat."
That rings especially true in rural areas. Croswell Police Chief David Hall said his officers face the possibility of having to handle crooks by themselves.
"Up here, your backup could be 40 to 50 minutes away," he said. "Having a larger caliber is to your advantage."
Not every police official agrees. Capac Chief Raymond Hawks said his officers carry a mix of 9 mm, .40 and .45 caliber. He carries a 9 mm and said it is the officer's ability to use the weapon that makes the difference.
"My theory is carry what you can shoot," he said. "My main concern is that they're accurate with what they carry."
Trend in society
While increasing their firepower, many area departments have bought less-lethal weapons, such as pepper-ball guns or Tasers. Such weapons can incapacitate a subject without killing them.
Marysville Police Chief Mark Thorner, whose department just ordered five Tasers, said such weapons are good alternatives to guns. But they aren't replacements.
"I've never had to shoot anyone in my career," he said. "That's good. But that doesn't mean that I'll leave my gun home tomorrow when I come to work."
Jarvis, with the Michigan Partnership to Prevent Gun Violence, said her organization is not against guns. But the trend of police carrying higher-caliber guns is worrisome because of what it means about society.
"We know the struggle police agencies have to protect their people," Jarvis said. "But look at the society we're building."
