USA – -(Ammoland.com)- A while back (2014) the FBI published a long diatribe defending their decision to go to the 9mm round as their choice for their agents. They plan on going forward with that now.
For some of their reason, the FBI is going against history and the FBI’s own experience. With that in mind, I invite your comments. Mine is at the end of the article. The FBI Reasoning document is embedded below.
History
The Miami Shootout: Eight FBI agents cornered two serial bank robbers, in the shootout only one agent came out unscathed. The FBI wanted more “Stopping Power” that they got from their 9mm and .38 special firearms. The FBI went to the 10mm, then to a “light 10mm” then to the S&W .40.
Now we’re back to the 9mm as their primary choice. Remember the .38 special can penetrate 15 inches of ballistic jell. The same criteria used for selecting the 9mm today. Additionally, without the limitation on the shape of the round required to allow assured feeding, the .38 special is probably a better stopper than the 9mm.
If you read the FBI’s reasons endorsing the 9mm, there are a handful of things that stand out.
- They wanted a lighter round to avoid wear on their firearms. (Budget)
- 70-80% of their shots miss (Poor training)
- They wanted a high capacity magazine so that they could shoot enough rounds to maybe get one or two hits. (See #2)
Politics
The fact is this all sounds a lot more like politics, cheaper ammunition, lobbyists selling new guns and the same tired old bureaucracy driven decision process that you see throughout history. From the Civil war holding back repeaters and cartridged rifles because the troops might “shoot too fast” and use up the ammunition to the Philippines in 1902, to today.
Oh.. the Philippines, when the .38 long colt failed to perform.
From Wikipedia:
The .38 long Colt’s relatively poor ballistics were highlighted during the Philippine–American War of 1899–1902. A typical instance occurred in 1905 and was later recounted by Col. Louis A. LaGarde:
Antonio Caspi, a prisoner on the island of Samar, P.I. attempted escape on Oct. 26, 1905. He was shot four times at close range in a hand-to-hand encounter by a .38 Colt’s revolver loaded with U.S. Army regulation ammunition. He was finally stunned by a blow on the forehead from the butt end of a Springfield carbine.
Col. LaGarde noted Caspi’s wounds were fairly well-placed: three bullets entered the chest, perforating the lungs. One passed through the body, one lodged near the back and the other lodged in subcutaneous tissue. The fourth round went though the right hand and exited through the forearm.[8]
As an emergency response to the round’s unexpectedly dismal performance, the U.S. Army authorized officers to carry M1873 Colt Single Action Army revolvers, chambered in .45 Colt, and issued from reserve stocks.
So if shot placement is all that matters and stopping power is a myth what happened with the .38 long colt?
Can’t you hear the ghostly whispers from 1901? We can ship 3 .38 LC cartridges for the same cost as 2 .45 LC. Look at the savings in practicing! Stopping power is a myth! Pistols are obsolete anyway. All the same old tired arguments that get brave men killed.
In my opinion, they should spend the money on practice instead of new guns. (Missing a man size target at 15 feet 8 out of 10 times is a disaster.) In firearm selection, they should choose firearms that fit the shooters hands, and they select the largest caliber you can control. A .380 in the head is better than a 10mm miss. With a miss ratio of around 80%, you run the risk of a LOT of collateral damage.
One last note, LEARN from history; Mark Twain said history doesn’t repeat itself, but it often rhymes. Look again at Miami and The Moro rebellion. Remember why the 1911 is in .45 and not 9mm Lugar. Maybe one size does not fit all? Remember the North Hollywood shoot out.
Look to the past and learn from went wrong. Look the US military issued 1911,s revolvers and Colt 1903’s in WWII. Concealability and Reliability often out weighted lethality.
Setting yourself up for a repeat of the Miami Shootout is not progress.
Do NOT let the brave agents who stood tall in Miami, and the men who gave up their lives to poor “management decision” in all the wars we’ve fought have died for nothing. Learn from OUR mistakes.
One last comment, EXPERIENCE shows us that the size of the grips on the GLOCK, is to large and boxy for women and many men. The increase in misses from 40% to 80% over the past 4 decades is due in large part to the width of the grip on the hi-capacity “wonder 9s”. Using lighter loads won’t stop the problem of gun ergonomics.
Executive Summary of Justification for Law Enforcement Partners
About Don McDougall:
Don McDougall is an NRA instructor and member of the Los Padres “Friends of the NRA” committee. If he’s not at the range you will find him setting the record straight with on gun issues and gun safety on AmmoLand Shooting Sports News.
50 years ago I was an Illinois resident. The Springfield, IL airport is located about 2 miles directly north of the Guard range that was built during the Civil War. There were huge berms, and the range was over 1,000 yards. I shot a few matches at Camp Lincoln. But the range has been shortened and extra berm constructed. A few military 30/06 bullets were found on the airport, a few airplanes were fired upon as they flew overhead in the traffic pattern for take-off and landing. They closed the range to civilians despite all of the shots fired at… Read more »
I am VERY FAR from being an expert. I served 3 years in the US Army. Part of that time was during the “Cuban Missile Crisis” but I never was in a shooting war. I have never been in a gunfight nor seen anyone who was shot but several thoughts came to me that I hope someone can enlighten me about: 1. One shot stops are usually when the brain or spinal cord are destroyed. Is this true? 2. Any wound that ONLY causes blood loss without immediate extreme loss of blood pressure will allow a crazed or hopped-up assailant… Read more »
“The 9mm provides struggling shooters the best chance of success…” I think that this little sentence conceals the largest mass of the iceberg in the FBI’s decision. 20% of the Special Agents are females, and unknown % are males who do not necessarily come from a rugged background (whether physically or mentally rugged). So the Agency selects what a sizeable portion of the agents can shoot – or rather, does not select what a sizeable portion of the agents CAN’T shoot effectively. The right thing to do would be to allow those who can – and want to – shoot… Read more »
I served as a correctional officer for sixteen years. For the majority, of my career, we were issued 158 RNL. The reason given for this was: To lessen the chance, that an inmate would die, The DOC did not give a damn about our safety, ,; they were more concerned saving money. It waa only, in the last couple of years, that we were issued 38 special 158 LSWC HP +p ammunition, aka the FBI load.
First off, the reason they went with 9mm as there “standard” round is because 95% of the agents can shoot it accurately. A 10mm cannot be shot well by the majority. Same with the 40 and even the 45. Shot placement is more important than caliber. What good is a 10mm in the hands of someone who couldn’t hit the side of a barn if they were standing inside the damned barn! todays bullet technology makes the 45 acp, 40 and 9mm equal! Period. Take your bias toward what ever your favorite hand gun cartridge is and throw it out… Read more »
The adoption of a CZ P 09 or 07 in 9mm would have been best. Very ergonomic thin grip, think single stack 1911, with lots of ammunition onboard, 21 rd magazines.