Written by: Greg Ellifritz Take a look at this article. Tacoma man shoots would-be burglar in the face The link above shows what happens in a typical birdshot defensive shooting. The birdshot created the desired response (stopping the attack), but it certainly didn’t incapacitate the burglar. If the burglar had been armed, […]
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News and Tactical Advice
Public Expectations of Police Officers
In the last decade, the relationship between the police and the society they serve has been quite contentious. Have you ever thought about how exactly you want your police to act? What mission priorities would you charge them with handling? It’s an interesting thought exercise. If you care about this issue at all, […]
Police Training Deaths
There have been a rash of police training injuries and deaths this year. If you haven’t been keeping track of such things, here are a few recent news articles to get you up to speed. CBP instructor dies after accidental shooting at west Miami-Dade gun range Retired DC Police Lieutenant charged with involuntary manslaughter […]
When the Killer’s Gun Jams- Can you Recognize an Opportunity for Action?
I’ve written quite a bit about malfunctioning guns over the years. I published Criminals and the Guns They Carry. That article was a study of all the unloaded broken and malfunctioning guns police take from criminals. I later wrote Weapon Malfunctions in the Active Shooter Environment about how commonly killers’ guns jam […]
Real Talk About Dead Bodies
What follows is some straight talk about my professional experience with dead bodies. Don’t read any more if you have a weak stomach or if you’ve had a recent death in your family. You’ve been warned. As most of you know, I worked as a police officer for 25 years in an upper class […]
Plan For The Worst- Preparing for Abduction and Restraint
Last week, there were two abduction cases that made it to national news. The first consisted of a Tinder date gone bad. The female half restrained her date’s hands and ankles with duct tape before choking and stabbing him. The second was even more sinister. After a long standing feud, a former employee went […]
Friends Don’t Let Friends Open Carry
Written by Greg Ellifritz It’s no secret that I’m not a fan of open carry (carrying an unconcealed handgun or long gun in public). Except in a hunting context or in very rural areas where one is unlikely to encounter another human, I generally think it’s a poor decision to carry openly. Too […]
Avoiding Scam Artists at Home and Abroad
Written by: Greg Ellifritz “The bad guy can lure you to an isolated place. This is almost infinitely varied. Anything from offering a cheap, unlicensed cab to telling you that there is a beautiful shrine just down the alley that isn’t on the tourist maps. It’s hard to pass up. I have learned an incredible […]
Another Downside To Flying With Guns
I’ve written extensively about the issue of air travel with guns. I encountered a problem last weekend that I hadn’t seen before. If you fly with guns frequently enough, you will notice that you can’t check in online or through your airline’s app for the return flight of your round trip if you checked […]
Let’s Talk About Verbal Commands
I was listening to the Concealed Carry Podcast recently and their episode Phrases and Commands You Should Rehearse and Memorize got me thinking. The description frames the issue under consideration well. “Jacob and Bryan get together to talk through the importance of having a handful of key phrase or commands that you consider […]
Testing .22 Caliber Defensive Ammunition
Knowing that I like data and enjoy shooting .22 pistols more than most, my friend Bob Cutajar sent me the results of his recent intensive study of a huge number of .22 rounds, charting velocity, consistency, and energy of each projectile. Bob graciously allowed me to share this useful data with all of you. […]
Recognizing the Sound of Gunfire
Written by: Greg Ellifritz With all the recent active shooter/active killer events happening worldwide, I’m continuing to see reports of the exact same phenomenon….people don’t recognize the sounds of gunfire when they are being shot at. In almost every mass shooting, victims report that they heard a loud noise, but thought it was some […]
I Got Shot in the Head
I’m obviously typing this article, so I apparently survived. I have a hard head and a tiny brain. There wasn’t much damage. Let me tell you what happened. I was teaching at Andy Stanford’s Surgical Speed Shooting Summit in Camden, Tennessee last Sunday. We were on an outdoor range. I had just finished […]
Uvalde Updates
Three weeks ago, I wrote an article covering my analysis of the Uvalde school shooting. Since then, we’ve learned some more facts about what happened that day. If anything, these facts indicate that the police response was even more dismal than I originally reported. Here are some updated news links and my thoughts about what […]
Playing Dead?
Written by Greg Ellifritz At least one of the students in last week’s Uvalde school shooting survived by playing dead and covering herself with blood from her now deceased friend in the classroom. Read about it here: Texas school shooting survivor smeared blood on herself, played dead: parents “When an 11-year-old student […]
Active Killer Math
* This is a guest post from my friend Ed Monk. Ed has done the math on this problem and is one of the world’s leading authorities on active killers. The faster we can stop the killer, the fewer bodies we will have. Read his post below for the exact mathematical details. Having armed security […]
More on Vehicle Run Down Tactics
All the recent active killer incidents are distracting folks from another threat…vehicle run down attacks. Despite the lack of media coverage, these have not gone away. Here’s an example of one I recently saw in my social media news feed. Man arrested after intentionally trying to run over people with SUV in East […]
Stay Mobile
*This is guest article from Steve Tarani and The Gun Mag Warehouse. The second knife fighting course I ever took as a student was taught by Steve more than 20 years ago. He is a tremendously gifted instructor with a unique perspective. I think you will enjoy the piece below. – Greg In the […]
Maybe You Should Reconsider Your Active Killer Response Strategy
Just a short post today to share a few of my most recent thoughts on how best to respond if you are caught up in an active killer attack. The Washington DC sniper attack last week got me thinking quite a bit about things. If you haven’t seen news about the attack, read the […]
The NYC Subway Active Shooter Attack
I’ve written about the phenomenon of active killer attacks for more than two decades. One of the most important themes I’ve identified is the fact that active killers want a large body count and are willing to constantly alter or change their tactics in order to achieve that goal. Yesterday’s mass shooting on a […]