Thread: Handguns for Self Defense in the USA.

Originally Posted by norsk

In New Zealand there are calls to arm Police.

Would you say that weapon retention in an arrest situation is paramount? Therefore are you more likely to draw your weapon as well as have a partner covering you, if you are arresting someone?

My fear regarding arming Police in New Zealand,is that there will be a spate of suspects shot due to weapons being drawn during or prior to arrests.

Secondly,I feel that the carrying of a Pistol creates a barrier between the Public and the Police.Bear in mind that the Police in New Zealand have traditionally been unarmed.

This is a three part question.

1. Weapon retention is clearly paramount when it comes to making an arrest for apprehending a suspect. The training and equipment comes in to correct any issues with that. When dealing with a possibly combative subject officers are usually trained to keep their gun side away from the suspect. The holsters themselves aren't simple holsters. They are what we call Level 3 retention holsters. Meaning that there is three separate motions that has to be done to draw the firearm from the holster.

As for cover when having another officer on scene; that depends on the arrest. The majority of my arrests are peaceful and no firearm needs to be drawn. Also in my career I have made a rest without additional officers on scene.

When dealing with a violent subject and attempting to apprehend and place into custody more officers is always better than less. There's nothing wrong both and tactics, officer safety, and scene security I'm having one officer holster his weapon while another provides cover during the arrest. It is even better when you have three officers on scene so one can provide cover with a non-lethal device like a taser and the other can provide cover with lethal force if necessary.

2. For law enforcement in the United States; drawing a weapon while constituting lethal force does not mean you have to pull the trigger when it is drawn. Plenty of times I've pointed a weapon at someone and plenty of times the message of surrender has gone through their thick heads and they stop resisting. For American law enforcement; lethal force is only authorized when there is the belief and fear of great bodily harm or death. Meaning that the subject has the ability the motive and the opportunity to take violent action against the police officer on scene or the General Public. So if I arrived on scene and a subject was armed with a butcher knife and someone was lying in a pool of blood in front of him that constitutes the use of lethal force. It also is no different than if I am speaking to someone and they suddenly become violent and draw a weapon or attack me. I could also use lethal force to defend myself.

Proper training in the use of force will prevent officers from drawing and going trigger-happy when needing to deploy said force. If your patrol officers are to be armed they need to have good proper training and mindset first and foremost before they even attempt qualifications. Proper firearms training isn't just the mechanical aspects of shooting a lot of it does go into mindset. The United States has an estimated number of 1 million - 800,000 police officers and out of the millions of encounters with law enforcement the majority are peaceful, civil, and no violence is taken.

3. The last part of your post is more cultural and there is no direct answer to that. I personally don't have an issue with law enforcement being armed but I understand from a cultural mindset and your country that traditionally law enforcement has not been armed. Will public perception change seeing police armed? Yes. Will it be negative? Unknown.

Things do change with time and with that social norms change too.

Back in the 1970s there was an effort to change the paramilitary look of American law enforcement. They went from the traditional Class B uniforms to that of a pair of slacks, button down shirt and tie, and a blazer with the guns hidden from public view by the Blazer. They also replaced the traditional police badge with a cloth patch on the left side of the jacket. The experiment was a disaster. Assault on Law Enforcement Officers went up and so did crime because there was no cultural authority vested in that image of police. Law enforcement went back to the traditional Class B uniform and now that is even changing with the current status of events. Gone are the traditional Class B uniforms and they are being replaced with combat boots, cargo paints, external vest with Ballistic plates, department marked polo shirts, and baseball caps instead of the traditional police officer service cap.