This supports something that I have been talking about for a long time.
FBI 9MM Justification,
FBI Training Division
This has been making its way around the Internet and we thought
it was worth sharing.
May 6,
2014
FBI
Training Division: FBI Academy, Quantico, VA
Executive
Summary of Justification for Law Enforcement Partners
· Caliber debates have
existed in law enforcement for decades
· Most of what is “common
knowledge” with ammunition and its effects on the human target are rooted in
myth and folklore
· Projectiles are what
ultimately wound our adversaries and the projectile needs to be the basis for
the discussion on what “caliber” is best
· In all the major law
enforcement calibers there exist projectiles which have a high likelihood of
failing LEO’s in a shooting incident and there are projectiles which have a
high ting incident likelihood of succeeding for LEO’s in a shooting incident
· Handgun stopping power
is simply a myth
· The single most
important factor in effectively wounding a human target is to have penetration
to a scientifically valid depth (FBI uses 12” – 18”)
· LEO’s miss between 70 –
80 percent of the shots fired during a shooting incident
· Contemporary projectiles
(since 2007) have dramatically increased the terminal effectiveness of many
premium line law enforcement projectiles (emphasis on the 9mm Luger offerings)
· 9mm Luger now offers
select projectiles which are, under identical testing conditions, I
outperforming most of the premium line .40 S&W and .45 Auto projectiles
tested by the FBI
· 9mm Luger offers higher
magazine capacities, less recoil, lower cost (both in ammunition and wear on
the weapons) and higher functional reliability rates (in FBI weapons)
· The majority of FBI
shooters are both FASTER in shot strings fired and more ACCURATE with shooting
a 9mm Luger vs shooting a .40 S&W (similar sized weapons)
· There is little to no
noticeable difference in the wound tracks between premium line law Auto
enforcement projectiles from 9mm Luger through the .45 Auto
· Given contemporary
bullet construction, LEO’s can field (with proper bullet selection) 9mm Lugers
with all of the terminal performance potential of any other law enforcement
pistol caliber with none of the disadvantages present with the “larger”
calibers
Justification for Law Enforcement Partners
Rarely
in law enforcement does a topic stir a more passionate debate than the choice
of handgun caliber made by a law enforcement organization. Many voice their
opinions by repeating the old adage “bigger is better” while others have “heard
of this one time” where a smaller caliber failed and a larger caliber “would
have performed much better.” Some even subscribe to the belief that a caliber
exists which will provide a “one shot stop.” It has been stated, “Decisions on
ammunition selection are particularly difficult because many of the pertinent
issues related to handguns and ammunition are firmly rooted in myth and
folklore.” This still holds as true today as it did when originally stated 20
years ago.
Caliber,
when considered alone, brings about a unique set of factors to consider such as
magazine capacity for a given weapon size, ammunition availability, felt
recoil, weight and cost. What is rarely discussed, but most relevant to the
caliber debate is what projectile is being considered for use and its terminal
performance potential.
One
should never debate on a gun make or caliber alone. The projectile is what
wounds and ultimately this is where the debate/discussion should focus. In each
of the three most common law enforcement handgun calibers (9mm Luger, .40 Smith
& Wesson and .45 AUTO) there are projectiles which have a high likelihood
of failing law enforcement officers and in each of these three calibers there
are projectiles which have a high likelihood of succeeding for law enforcement
officers during a shooting incident. The choice of a service projectile must
undergo intense scrutiny and scientific evaluation in order to select the best
available option.
Understanding Handgun Caliber Terminal Ballistic Realities
Many
so?called “studies” have been performed and many analyses of statistical data
have been undertaken regarding this issue. Studies simply involving shooting
deaths are irrelevant since the goal of law enforcement is to stop a threat
during a deadly force encounter as quickly as possible. Whether or not death
occurs is of no consequence as long as the threat of death or serious injury to
law enforcement personnel and innocent third parties is eliminated.
“The concept of immediate incapacitation is the only goal of any
law enforcement shooting and is the underlying rationale for decisions
regarding weapons, ammunition, calibers and training.”1
Studies
of “stopping power” are irrelevant because no one has ever been able to define
how much power, force, or kinetic energy, in and of itself, is required to
effectively stop a violent and determined adversary quickly, and even the
largest of handgun calibers are not capable of delivering such force. Handgun
stopping power is simply a myth. Studies of so?called “one shot stops” being
used as a tool to define the effectiveness of one handgun cartridge, as opposed
to another, are irrelevant due to the inability to account for psychological
influences and due to the lack of reporting specific shot placement. In short,
extensive studies have been done over the years to “prove” a certain cartridge
is better than another by using grossly flawed methodology and or bias as a
precursor to manipulating statistics. In order to have a meaningful
understanding of handgun terminal ballistics, one must only deal with facts
that are not in dispute within the medical community, i.e. medical realities,
and those which are also generally accepted within law enforcement, i.e.
tactical realities.
Medical Realities
Shots
to the Central Nervous System (CNS) at the level of the cervical spine (neck)
or above, are the only means to reliably cause immediate incapacitation. In
this case, any of the calibers commonly used in law enforcement, regardless of
expansion, would suffice for obvious reasons. Other than shots to the CNS, the
most reliable means for affecting rapid incapacitation is by placing shots to
large vital organs thus causing rapid blood loss. Simply stated, shot placement
is the most critical component to achieving either method of incapacitation.
Wounding
factors between rifle and handgun projectiles differ greatly due to the
dramatic differences in velocity, which will be discussed in more detail
herein. The wounding factors, in order of importance, are as follows:
A. Penetration:
A
projectile must penetrate deeply enough into the body to reach the large vital
organs, namely heart, lungs, aorta, vena cava and to a lesser extent liver and
spleen, in order to cause rapid blood loss. It has long been established by
expert medical professionals, experienced in evaluating gunshot wounds, that
this equates to a range of penetration of 12?18 inches, depending on the size
of the individual and the angle of the bullet path (e.g., through arm,
shoulder, etc.). With modern properly designed, expanding handgun bullets, this
objective is realized, albeit more consistently with some law enforcement
projectiles than others. 1 Handgun Wounding Factors and Effectiveness: Firearms
Training Unit, Ballistic Research Facility, 1989.
B. Permanent Cavity:
The
extent to which a projectile expands determines the diameter of the permanent
cavity which, simply put, is that tissue which is in direct contact with the
projectile and is therefore destroyed. Coupled with the distance of the path of
the projectile (penetration), the total permanent cavity is realized. Due to
the elastic nature of most human tissue and the low velocity of handgun
projectiles relative to rifle projectiles, it has long been established by
medical professionals, experienced in evaluating gunshot wounds, that the
damage along a wound path visible at autopsy or during surgery cannot be
distinguished between the common handgun calibers used in law enforcement. That
is to say an operating room surgeon or Medical Examiner cannot distinguish the
difference between wounds caused by .35 to .45 caliber projectiles.
C. Temporary Cavity:
The
temporary cavity is caused by tissue being stretched away from the permanent
cavity. If the temporary cavity is produced rapidly enough in elastic tissues,
the tensile strength of the tissue can be exceeded resulting in tearing of the
tissue. This effect is seen with very high velocity projectiles such as in
rifle calibers, but is not seen with handgun calibers. For the temporary cavity
of most handgun projectiles to have an effect on wounding, the velocity of the
projectile needs to exceed roughly 2,000 fps. At the lower velocities of
handgun rounds, the temporary cavity is not produced with sufficient velocity
to have any wounding effect; therefore any difference in temporary cavity noted
between handgun calibers is irrelevant. “In order to cause significant injuries
to a structure, a pistol bullet must strike that structure directly.”2 2
DiMaio, V.J.M.: Gunshot Wounds, Elsevier Science Publishing Company, New York,
NY, 1987, page 42.
D. Fragmentation:
Fragmentation
can be defined as “projectile pieces or secondary fragments of bone which are
impelled outward from the permanent cavity and may sever muscle tissues, blood
vessels, etc., apart from the permanent cavity”3. Fragmentation does not
reliably occur in soft tissue handgun wounds due to the low velocities of
handgun bullets. When fragmentation does occur, fragments are usually found
within one centimeter (.39”) of the permanent cavity.4 Due to the fact that
most modern premium law enforcement ammunition now commonly uses bonded
projectiles (copper jacket bonded to lead core), the likelihood of
fragmentation is very low. For these reasons, wounding effects secondary to any
handgun caliber bullet fragmentation are considered inconsequential. 3 Fackler,
M.L., Malinowski, J.A.: “The Wound Profile: A Visual Method for Quantifying
Gunshot Wound Components”, Journal of Trauma 25: 522?529, 1958. 4 Handgun
Wounding Factors and Effectiveness: Firearms Training Unit, Ballistic Research
Facility, 1989.
Psychology
Any
discussion of stopping armed adversaries with a handgun has to include the
psychological state of the adversary. Psychological factors are probably the
most important relative to achieving rapid incapacitation from a gunshot wound
to the torso.5 First and foremost, the psychological effects of being shot can
never be counted on to stop an individual from continuing conscious voluntary
action. Those who do stop commonly do so because they decide to, not because
they have to. The effects of pain are often delayed due to survival patterns
secondary to “fight or flight” reactions within the body, drug/alcohol
influences and in the case of extreme anger or aggression, pain can simply be
ignored. Those subjects who decide to stop immediately after being shot in the
torso do so commonly because they know they have been shot and are afraid of
injury or death, regardless of caliber, velocity, or bullet design. It should
also be noted that psychological factors can be a leading cause of
incapacitation failures and as such, proper shot placement, adequate
penetration, and multiple shots on target cannot be over emphasized. 5 Ibid.
Tactical Realities
Shot
placement is paramount and law enforcement officers on average strike an
adversary with only 20 – 30 percent of the shots fired during a shooting
incident. Given the reality that shot placement is paramount (and difficult to
achieve given the myriad of variables present in a deadly force encounter) in
obtaining effective incapacitation, the caliber used must maximize the
likelihood of hitting vital organs. Typical law enforcement shootings result in
only one or two solid torso hits on the adversary. This requires that any
projectile which strikes the torso has as high a probability as possible of
penetrating deeply enough to disrupt a vital organ.
The
Ballistic Research Facility has conducted a test which compares similar sized
Glock pistols in both .40 S&W and 9mm calibers, to determine if more
accurate and faster hits are achievable with one versus the other. To date, the
majority of the study participants have shot more quickly and more accurately
with 9mm caliber Glock pistols. The 9mm provides struggling shooters the best
chance of success while improving the speed and accuracy of the most skilled
shooters.
CONCLUSION
While
some law enforcement agencies have transitioned to larger calibers from the 9mm
Luger in recent years, they do so at the expense of reduced magazine capacity,
more felt recoil, and given adequate projectile selection, no discernible
increase in terminal performance.
Other
law enforcement organizations seem to be making the move back to 9mm Luger
taking advantage of the new technologies which are being applied to 9mm Luger
projectiles. These organizations are providing their armed personnel the best
chance of surviving a deadly force encounter since they can expect faster and
more accurate shot strings, higher magazine capacities (similar sized weapons)
and all of the terminal performance which can be expected from any law
enforcement caliber projectile.
Given
the above realities and the fact that numerous ammunition manufacturers now
make 9mm Luger service ammunition with outstanding premium line law enforcement
projectiles, the move to 9mm Luger can now be viewed as a decided advantage for
our armed law enforcement personnel.
