[Jack Lawman]

Inevitably, most “Glock” threads morph into “Cops and Glocks” threads. The following post is only for those readers who have not galvanized their opinion of the Glock. I would hate to be accused of trying to win hearts and minds.

The Glock is the choice of most LE agencies because it is a neat fit with the average skill level of the average police officer. Of approximately 883,600 (2008) officers in the US, there are some really bad ones, some really good ones, and a lot of average ones. This discussion centers around the vast majority of “average” officers.

1. The Glock has three passive safeties: Trigger, firing pin, and drop. In the heat of a gunfight, many officers carrying firearms with a manual safety will draw on a threat, mash on a locked trigger, realize they need to flip off the safety, flip off the safety, then fire. This 1 – 2 second delay has cost lives. A Glock is drawn and fired… period. Is it a training issue? Certainly. Would it be “safer” if all police carried manual safety arms and trained the safety flip into their subconscious? Absolutely. That said, I have yet to see any body of citizenry clamor to pay higher taxes for better guns and triple range, ammo, and manpower expenses. Even so, the bad cops will carry their pistols with the safety off to “get the edge.”

2. I submit that 99.9% of all Glock accidental discharges are caused by user error. The trigger is pulled on a loaded chamber, period. The trigger must be pulled on a Glock in order to disassemble. It is drilled over and over to never pull the trigger on a loaded firearm if you don’t intend to shoot. People forget, sometimes with fatal consequences. The only true accidental discharge of a Glock (as opposed to negligent discharge) I have heard of is an officer was holstering his Glock at the range and a small plastic ball dangling from the drawstring of his raid jacket found its way inside the trigger guard of his pistol. When he holstered, the object depressed the trigger safety and the pistol discharged (minor injury IIRC).

3. The majority of gunfights take place between contact distance and 7 yards. Urban police gunfights usually take place between 0 and 10 feet. At these distances, I would gladly go up against any supertuned .45 with a working 9mm Bryco, Jennings, Kel-Tec, etc IF I get a 1 second headstart on the draw. At these distances, the inherent accuracy of the firearm just isn’t an issue. Though not as accurate as a match pistol, the Glock is as accurate as most any other service pistol.

Think of police officers as home improvement contractors. Some can do excellent work, but they make a mess when they paint. Or car mechanics, some can fix your car very well, but they have trouble with the electronics. Some otherwise EXCELLENT officers just aren’t gun guys. It’s as simple as that. Problem is that when you use your gun properly, you’re a hero. When you mess up, you’re a zero. Both of these guys make the paper. The guy who doesn’t make the paper is the guy who carries his gun for 20+ years and is skillful enough to never have an incident. That’s most of us.

Jack
(Never in a gunfight)