There was an interesting confluence of events over the weekend. The first was the anniversary of Patrick Rogers’ death. A good number of experienced private sector trainers were influenced by Rogers and likely connected to each other by him. The other was an email question early Sunday morning about the process of making ready. What do those two things have to do with each other?  Pat was big on the concept of “process.” Having a consistent way of doing things that did not change. Whatever it is, do it the same way every time. Practice makes permanent. Perfect (or proper) practice makes ..read more

There’s a balance to maintain between safety and acceptable risk We can agree that there’s room for a variety of techniques in firearms training and law enforcement tactics. However, we must also honor fundamental principles. One of these is safety—an important consideration in all law enforcement operations we cannot ignore. However, we also cannot allow ourselves to be hamstrung by an inappropriate emphasis on safety. We must maintain a balance between acceptable risk and safety to complete our mission. Out of Balance Unfortunately, I see indications we are not maintaining this balance rega ..read more

The ability of law enforcement and other first responders to operate effectively in low-light conditions is crucial. This is where the importance of a reliable, hands-free lighting solution, such as a headlamp, comes into play. When employed in a tactically sound manner, they can be invaluable. Let’s be clear here. Headlamps are a tool for administrative tasks and SAR, not for room clearing or looking for bad people.  Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Department searched through the rubble of the partially collapsed Champlain Towers South building of Surfside condominium for survivors. Headlamps a ..read more

Anything made by Man can break or fail. Far too often, while they rarely come at a good time, those breakages or failures happen at very inopportune moments, like in the middle of trying to save your life or the life of another during a deadly force event. Types In a dual-column box magazine, the most common manifestation of this is a double feed – meaning two rounds have left the magazine at the same time and are both trying to enter the chamber.  The Tap will seat the magazine and is only one part of the process. However, it is different with a handgun because the magazine only allow ..read more

When I hung up my 1911a1 pistols at the end of 2011 (isn’t that year an odd coincidence now?), I figured I was done with custom pistols. The custom market really wasn’t active with Glocks yet. I’m not sure anyone was thinking of work like that on the M&P. Then, last year, two people reached out to me about the Fueled M&P and an acquaintance at Ed Brown sent me one. See the first article HERE. I’ve been shooting it for several months now, both on the square range and in competition. Three poppers are down, the fourth is going, and I’m engaging number five. Bottom line, up front? This ..read more

‘Swatting’ started as a tactic used by online gamers against other players. It involves a false report of a violent crime designed to generate a significant law enforcement response. That response is because law enforcement believes an active shooter event or other violent crime is occurring. Swatting Incidents and Victims Of all possible responses, a patrol-level response is the least bad. The earliest recorded case of swatting happened in 2002.  In a 2017 swatting incident involving a dispute over a video game, a man was shot and killed by police after exiting his home. The caller h ..read more

Over the last several weeks, I’ve been on the road teaching much more than I have been at my place. As I finished up the most recent trip, a fellow instructor suggested I document my experiences for others. These classes were at a fixed-site shooting school with decades of experience, a recurring conference at the same location yearly, and one-to-three-day classes that traveled to teach at multiple locations. California A Concord, CA classroom with a large screen TV – a definite help for presentations. The first of the classes—an instructor development program—was held at a club range on th ..read more

You’ve probably seen videos of officers in stressful confrontations mistaking their pistols for their Taser (Electronic Control Weapon-ECW), causing them to shoot the suspect. There have been at least 18 incidents of weapon confusion in the U.S. between 2001 and 2021. Many of the officers involved were convicted and served prison time. Why did these incidents occur, and how can we avoid them in the future? Back in my Day!   When the Taser X26 was first issued in the 2000s, it seemed obvious to many of us that, under stress, weapon confusion was a real possibility. Before any studies ..read more

We know the law enforcement profession is stressful. And that the higher-risk encounters involve greater stress. Add to that the involvement of citizens in high-risk events where they are potential victims of or witnesses to, violent crimes. The totality of these stressors can be negative in both the near term and the long term as well, if not addressed. A question that follows is how best to train the Good Guys (and Gals) for these so that they can manage the stressors and prevail? Given the stressors that can be present in these events, it is very likely that one’s heart rate will increase ..read more

The Team Awareness Kit (TAK) is a geospatial mapping tool that is improving how law enforcement and other public safety personnel operate. Originally developed at the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory as the Tactical Assault Kit, TAK was refined over several years by Special Operations Forces and warfighters through actual. It has been adapted to suit the operations of agencies at the local, state, and federal levels. A civilian version of the software is available, too. TAK was originally developed by the Air Force Research Laboratory for use by special operations forces (Credit: US Navy ..read more