Ringing the Bell

Ringing the bell or hitting your target requires practice

Any review of a firearm must include a discussion of group size.  It is an important factor.  Nobody would use a general purpose handgun or rifle that shoots a sixteen-inch group at 25 feet.  There are such firearms that have highly specialized use so that group size at 25 feet is not a factor.

As a former NRA bull’s-eye shooter, I can confirm having confidence your pistol will function and is accurate is a major component of the sport.  Elmer Keith is well known for developing loads and his shooting skills but also for saying only accurate guns are interesting.

The reason is quite simple.  If you are convinced your gun shoots a tight group, you know you are the weakest link.  And that is where you can make improvement.

However self-defense is significantly different from bull’s-eye shooting or other sporting competition.  I don’t think the major differences could be expressed any simpler than:

One.  You could kill someone.

Two.  You could be killed.

Sometime ago CNN ran an article about police accuracy.  People outside of the shooting community sometimes believe police officers spend their off hours shooting hundreds of rounds in practice, over seen by champion level instructor.  This results in their ability to shoot a 1-inch group at any distance while running down the street.  Television often promotes this idea.

Here’s what CNN published:  “…Shooting accuracy varies based on how close an officer is to a suspect -- but data shows that they're often not accurate shots.”

Welcome to reality.

A 2019 study of the Dallas Police Department found that in more than 130 shootings, officers struck their targets 35% of the time. Most of their shots were misses. And in a 2006 analysis, which examined a number of major metropolitan police department shootings throughout the late '80s and early '90s, it was found that hit rates rarely exceeded 50%. Some departments, including the New York Police Department in 1990, hit only about 23% of targets.

Damn!

“The anxiety and adrenaline of a high-stress deadly force incident may cloud officers' judgment,” said Cedric Alexander, a police training consultant and 39-year law enforcement veteran.

"Some officers will testify or give a statement immediately after that they fired three to four shots when they actually fired 10 to 11 shots," Stoughton said. "In high-stress, adrenaline, heart-pounding moments, an officer is not counting their shots."

The point of training is to prepare officers for those high-stress incidents where they may be required to use deadly force. But an officer who perceives that they're in immediate danger "may just keep pulling the trigger until their brain catches up with them," Stoughton said.

The CNN reports comes to the conclusion that in many cases, their training is lacking.  

I find that understandable.  Many communities don’t have the budget to provide the training needed to improve hit to miss ratios.  These skills degrade and need constant renewal as well as improvement.  Many police offices are not students of the gun and will not spend some of their free time at matches.

Jim Cirillo did.  Jim was a member of the New York City Police Department Stake-Out Squad and he knew he would have to shoot someone in self-defense.  At the time the International Practical Shooting Confederation (IPSC) was the only real option to bull’s-eye.  As I remember, Cirillo shot every match he could in preparation.

Is there a lesson here for the armed civilian?  Yes, absolutely.  First let me acknowledge that the armed civilian doesn’t need to close, to seek out, to take into custody a criminal actor.  That’s someone else’s job.  Our job is to prevent him or her from harming us and our loved ones.

Secondly, the legal system gives police a wider latitude , although that is changing, in regard to the use of lethal force.  That doesn’t apply to the armed citizen.  If you shoot someone you didn’t intend to shoot, you may find yourself behind bars.

But the answer to hitting what you mean to is the same for me and the police.  Practice. 

With winter closing outdoor ranges, our skill set has started to degrade.  We have all seen how we need to knock the rust off come spring.  During the outdoor season we can practice with Armstrong movers, moving target indicators, even rolling dice to determine which targets will be engaged.  We can participate in organized matches, which mean we just have to show up with our gear and throw a little money at the organizers. 

Some ranges and clubs are running these style matches indoors, but in the Covid-19 era not everyone is comfortable with that. 

You can work on basic skills in your basement, garage or back room.  You just need the willingness to do it.  There is dry fire, drawing and presenting the empty gun, changing dummy magazines.  You can pie doorways, work on clearing stairs (that is so damn hard!), you can work from concealment.

Be safe, be careful, be prepared.