| July 2019 | Real Hero Report
Pistol-Shaped Hammer
J
ust when I think I’m doing well as a police firearms instructor, I find
out I’ve overlooked a critical component of the fight–like hitting
someone with an unholstered impact tool. Yes, hitting a suspect
with a firearm. We’ve talked about it but never really practiced it. Striking
a suspect with a firearm means that I’m in a pretty bad situation. Possibly,
the suspect is inside of elbow distance; my firearm is unholstered; deadly
force is justified; innocents are preventing a shot; the suspect has some
control over the firearm; or a malfunction has occurred. This is a deadly
force fight. What now? I’m no defensive tactics instructor, but here are
some of ideas.
A weapon strike is physically hitting someone with a loaded or
unloaded firearm with the intent of incapacitating or disrupting them in
some way other than shooting them, or until they can be shot. Remember
that the firearm should not be used to strike a suspect unless deadly force
is justified. Since an officer could be disarmed and killed when fighting in
very close quarters, have students practice articulating this force option
aloud so that the condition is more easily recognizable if it arises. In a
life or death situation, there is a risk of the firearm discharging, leading
to the death of the suspect or another person, so practice in a safe and
controlled manner with plenty of input from your defensive tactics experts.
Poorly addressed, the result might be a charge of gross negligence, so
make sure you can articulate the need for the actions taught.
Using a pistol (blue/red gun, no real guns, of course), a muzzle strike
to the face, neck or chest could be very effective in creating a small
window of time and distance for a follow-up action. The trigger finger is
completely removed from the trigger guard to prevent a reflexive gripping
response that would result in a discharge. “What if I can’t remove it prior
to striking?” If the pistol is out of the holster and you’re fighting for your
life, deadly force applies anyway. Remember, the intent is to make the
assault stop or create enough distance for you to stop it. Use the muzzle
as the strike point and try to punch the pistol through the person. Don’t
tap them with the muzzle; hit and hit hard! Retract the firearm quickly
after the strike. The energy directed onto a small surface area, such as the
muzzle, can have great effect.
We also can use the dust cover and slide like a hammer, striking the
suspect’s face or head. Practice by placing the trigger finger outside of the
trigger guard and hit hard. Immediately recover and respond as necessary.
When working on a strike, grip the pistol tightly. A loose hold can cause a
sprained wrist or injure your fingers. I would stay away from striking with
the magazine floorplate if possible, only because it could break or unseat.
But if that’s all you got, hit and hit hard!
When fighting for my life, if all I am holding is a pistol and I am unable
to shoot, you can expect that I will use it like a hammer until I can use
it like a gun. Police instructors commonly say to fight, bite, spit, chew,
claw–anything to stay alive. This improvised impact tool is the “anything”
portion. This action probably will be seen by the courts as an application
of deadly force, so great care must be taken in the development of any
training. Hopefully these few thoughts will provoke a much-needed
training response. Uncomfortable? Yes. Necessary? You bet.
Canton Post 45 Works with
Homeless Veteran Program
to Provide 7th Donated Car
A
Canton, Georgia, working closely with the Cherokee
part on a sofa in a local friend’s apartment.
“I have known Jay for the
past three years,” stated Jim
came to me and wanted to end his
issues we discussed with Jay, we
thought sending him down to the
handling of Jay, we moved him
a plan with Jay that included our program paying for him to stay
home of record for any correspondence coming to him.”
had saved enough money to move out of the hotel and into an
has reconnected with his two children with whom he had lost
contact.
helping pay it forward to another veteran in need.