21 Dec 00

"Conversational" distance?

Another issue that jumped out at me from the latest iteration of SOP-9 is that, when NYPD officers are shot by criminal suspects (this excludes accidental shootings):

(1) The distance from the officer to the suspect is "conversational" (six meters and in), and

(2) The part of the officer's body most often hit is the lower abdomen and right leg

This suggests to some that criminal suspects only shoot at officers within a six-meter radius, but statistics do not bear that out. In actuality, criminal suspects shoot at officers at ALL ranges, but they usually are unable to hit the officer until they get within six meters. Even then, they typically jerk their shots low and left, striking the officer in the lower abdomen and/or the right leg.

This suggests to me that our ability to unerringly detect and verbally "arrest" suspects at a distance greater than six meters and then keep them from getting closer is an important skill. It also suggests that our ability to identify and skillfully use movement and available cover is also critical.

In addition, the data suggests that our ability to be effective with a pistol at ranges out to fifteen meters is critical. We can hit consistently at extended ranges. They can't. So long as we do not allow them to get close, they remain at a critical disadvantage.

/John