November 2020

Training & Education November 27, 2020

Shooting Steel – Up Close and Safe

Todd Fletcher For years, firearms instructors and officers have enjoyed the benefits of training with steel targets. The immediate feedback from steel indicates the successful application of marksmanship and it is one of the best features of training with steel targets. However, it doesn’t take long to figure out that a disadvantage of training with steel targets is that bullet splatter can come back towards the shooter, potentially causing discomfort or injury. The Fragshield, from Take Aim Targets, can reduce…

News November 27, 2020

New Article on Responding to Domestic Violence

Published by the Office of Community Oriented Policing, “Domestic Violence 101: How Should a Law Enforcement Agency Respond?” discusses best practices for police agencies responding to domestic violence; what resources exist to support their work; and how law enforcement officers and departments can build skills, capacity and comfort to address these crimes and the individuals involved with expertise and care. The article provides the essentials which officers should know about domestic violence and the importance of having a departmental domestic violence policy….

Training & Education November 25, 2020

Everything You Need to Know About Empty Hands Knife Defense

Ralph Mroz Many officers believe that, since they carry a sidearm, pepper spray, baton, or a TASER®, they are adequately prepared to defend themselves during an edged weapon attack. Many of us who were in law enforcement back in 1988 can remember Caliber Press’ excellent training video, “Surviving Edged Weapons.” At the time, it was a real eye-opener, one which popularized the “21 foot drill,” or the Tueller Drill. This was the concept put forth by Dennis Tueller, a sergeant…

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News November 25, 2020

New Report: Homeland Threat Assessment

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has released a comprehensive report on threats to American security. The “October 2020 Homeland Threat Assessment” is specifically intended for public consumption and factors in all the new challenges DHS faces in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. The inaugural report arranges the topmost threats to America in seven sections, including the cyber threat to the homeland, foreign influence in the homeland, threats to the US economic security, the terrorist threat to the homeland,…

Weaponry November 18, 2020

A Critical Look at Police Pistol Cartridges

Mike Boyle Since the early part of the 20th century, the quest for the ultimate law enforcement handgun cartridge has generated all sorts of debates. For the better part of that time, the .38 Special reigned supreme and it wasn’t until the wholesale switch away from revolvers to semiautomatic pistols that the picture began to change. By the late 1980s, departments all over the country were transitioning to autopistols and, more often than not, they were chambered for the 9mm…

Weaponry November 18, 2020

Evaluating the Peacekeeper Rapid Containment Baton

Mike Boyle Like many individuals who have been around the game for a while, I have trained with or carried a multitude of intermediate force options including Mace®, OC spray, different types of batons, and a conducted energy device. One common quality is that all of these tools were promoted as being able to quickly shut down the aggressive behavior of a determined adversary. Under optimum conditions that may be true, but a harsh reality is that there is no…

Training & Education November 16, 2020

Competitive Shooting Can Give Officers an Edge

Todd Fletcher As iron sharpens iron, competitive shooting sports can help officers sharpen their firearms skills. Practical shooting sports evolved from groups of law enforcement officers, military people and private citizens looking for ways to improve on the techniques, training and equipment of the day. Competitions evolved to test what had been learned and quickly became matches requiring competitors to deal with constantly changing scenarios while shooting rapidly and accurately. Many of the advances in firearms and firearm accessories can…

News November 16, 2020

New Lazer-Shield Adhesive Strip Protects Police Officers from Increasing Threat of Laser Beam Attacks

Super Seer Corporation has released Lazer-Shield to effectively protect police offers from the growing threat of laser beam attacks during protests. The shield is a universal self-adhesive protective strip which reduces a green, blue or violet laser beam from one watt to a harmless 1/1000 watt. Inexpensive high-powered handheld lasers have led to an increasing number of attacks on law enforcement officers, often in riot situations. Attackers direct the laser toward an officer’s eyes. If struck without protection, the officer…

Cover of Transportation 2021 For Wheels of Justice

The Wheels of Justice November 13, 2020

The Wheels of Justice November/December 2020

Sergeant James Post TRANSPORTATION 2021 P&SN presents its 23rd annual report on the latest technical advances in police vehicles, components and aftermarket equipment. The year 2020 has been one of the most significant in the last century for all Americans and not in a good way. The United States has been attacked with a virus which, in nine months as I write this, has infected 7.8 million Americans and killed over 215,000 souls (with similar results worldwide). This pandemic has…

Busted November 13, 2020

BUSTED! – Real Stories of Genuine Absurdity November/December 2020

JAMES L. MCCLINTON, PH.D. In case you were wondering what kinds of idiots want to defund the police… In Illinois, a Virgil man contacted the Kane County Sheriff’s Office to let them know that his “DEFUND THE POLICE” sign had been stolen from his front yard where it was posted. Deputies diligently applied their detective skills in locating the culprit and the stolen sign. Witnesses gave them enough clues to wrap up the case in short order and the man…