Written by: Greg Ellifritz During my police career, my department sent me to several schools covering criminal interview and interrogation tactics. Most of the classes I took involved what is known as “Reid Interviewing.” The Reid Method teaches a very specific interview method that won’t be useful for most of you. However, some of […]
This is a guest post from my friend Darryl Bolke. It is a followup to the Thoughts on Revolver Reliability post he contributed last week. The original is published on Darryl’s Facebook page DB’s Shooting Adventures. Darryl is the co-owner of Hardwired Tactical and a very well-established firearms instructor. All of you revolver […]
This is a guest post from my friend Darryl Bolke. Darryl is the co-owner of Hardwired Tactical and a very well established firearms instructor. I saw this posting on Darryl’s Facebook page DB’s Shooting Adventures. In the piece, Darryl discusses his view of revolvers as defensive sidearms. All of you revolver shooters and instructors should […]
Written by Greg Ellifritz Unless you have been hiding under a rock you’ll know that tomorrow marks the day of the mid-term political elections in the United States. As a result of the election, congress may soon be under the control of a different political party. That often creates some cultural friction. Most […]
Written by: Greg Ellifritz I’ve been thinking a lot lately about active killer events. I’m convinced that it is getting incrementally more and more dangerous to intervene in such an attack. A study came out last week stating that 8% of Americans have a CCW permit/license. Unlicensed carry is also completely legal in 24 states. […]
Written by: Greg Ellifritz I’ve seen some recent articles on the internet talking about citizens with CCW permits carrying more than one gun in public. While I carry two pistols in uniform every day, I rarely carry a second pistol when I am off duty and on my own time. I have nothing against […]
*After the recent Canada active stabbers and the shooter in Memphis yesterday, I think I need to re-post this one. -Greg Anyone researching the tactics of active killers is quickly confronted with the fact that killers study police response tactics. Being informed by their research, the killers adapt their own tactics in order to […]
Written by Greg Ellifritz “I’m in fear for my life!” I’ve heard this phrase pop up a couple of times in the last month. The first time was during a close quarters shooting class I was teaching. The students were working a weapon retention drill and I had instructed them to use loud, […]
I’ve been traveling a lot lately and am seeing a gradual increase in public mask wearing across the country and worldwide. I was in Colombia last month. There were no mask requirements when I arrived. In less than three weeks, masks were required in the airport and on all flights to and from […]
Ten years ago, an experienced handgun instructor contacted me to help him reconstruct the events of an accidental shooting. This instructor shot himself while reholstering after doing a demonstration during a basic concealed handgun class. I know what you are thinking…. “He shouldn’t have had his finger on the trigger when […]
Written by: Greg Ellifritz You’ve just shot the criminal who broke into your house and threatened you with a weapon. The threat has been neutralized and police have been called. You’ve read my articles in the past, so you know it’s not a good idea to have a gun in your hand when the […]
*This is a guest article from a friend and reader who recently took a couple of my courses. Barry is retired from both the FBI and a job as a police chief. He managed high threat event security for many years in his FBI position. He provides some suggestions on best practices for school security. […]
Written by Greg Ellifritz I’ve taught a lot of active killer response classes over the years. One of the key learning points I regularly discuss is how to avoid being mistaken for the killer if you choose to draw your pistol and respond during an active killer event. Last year’s police shooting of Johnny […]
This is my analysis of the Texas tragedy designed to explain the pertinent issues to those who don’t have a background on the topic of active killer response. Additionally it should provide police agencies and school staff with some best practice guidelines to prevent such a disaster in the future. This article is based […]
Although I generally don’t advise my students to carry their firearms off body, I recognize that lots of folks carry guns in purses and bags. One of the stated “advantages” of such a carry method is the fact that you can fire the gun from inside the bag or purse without removing it in […]
Written by: Greg Ellifritz Now that most states have a process allowing citizens to legally carry concealed handguns, many of you may be carrying a firearm more frequently, or just starting to carry for the first time. A common mistake I see with a great number of my students is an obsessive focus on […]
OK, let me get this out of the way right off the bat. I carry a Glock pistol during about 95% of my waking hours. My police duty gun was either a Glock 21 or a Glock 17. A Glock 26 or a Glock 19 in 9mm are constant companions in my off-duty hours. […]
Written by: Greg Ellifritz In yesterday’s article, I talked about the common guns I see carried all around the world. As a traveler, since you aren’t likely to be able to legally acquire firearms overseas, this continuation of last week’s theme covers some of the weapons you ARE able to carry. When I’m […]
Written by: Greg Ellifritz I regularly take short trip to visit friends in the Dominican Republic. My most recent trip prompted some friends to ask me how I planned on protecting myself in a third world country where it is illegal for me to carry a firearm. I’ve spent an average of at least […]
Written by Greg Ellifritz I regularly teach a class that covered the skills an armed citizen needs to respond to a terrorist bombing attack. In the class, I spend a lot of time talking about the concept of the “secondary device.” The secondary device is some hazard that is designed to injure or kill […]
