The Hollywood Shootout
Posted: Tue Apr 30, 2013 9:32 am
For years American Policemen went lightly armed. Some officers were proud of the fact that they never once had to pull their firearms, relying instead on their interpersonal skills to defuse the situations they encountered. While every officer had to show some proficiency with their sidearms, heavy weaponry wasn't normally carried around. Below is a video from the 1930's that shows the process that an officer went through to qualify in the LA county Sheriff's Dept. Please ignore the egregious and almost Chaplinesque gun handling, it apparently was a very different time.
[youtube][/youtube]
On February 28th, 1997, an incident occurred that was one of the events that changed that thinking.
It changed the way American Police forces armed themselves and it led to an increasing militarism in American Police Departments.
Even small departments started acquiring armored vehicles, heavier weapons and SWAT teams. Of course, one can understand the frustration of the officers at the scene and their department and the desire never to be caught shorthanded like that again. Almost every Police cruiser now carries a shotgun and a Patrol rifle of some sort.
In this National Geographic Video, the event of that day unfold.
[youtube][/youtube]
Please also ignore the uninformed, unresearched references to AK47 ammunition. It is after all what goes for journalism these days (even at the National Geographic). One phone call to a gun shop could have got the authors the correct info. but it sounds more sensational to say "armor piercing" ammo and imply that it was specially imported. The standard Russian "ball" as supplied to their forces and imported into this country has been steel cased, with steel jacketed bullets. Nowadays you can buy regular hunting rounds in 7.62 X 39 but the vast majority of cheap, surplus ammo for the AK available here has the standard steel jacketed bullet.
[youtube][/youtube]
On February 28th, 1997, an incident occurred that was one of the events that changed that thinking.
It changed the way American Police forces armed themselves and it led to an increasing militarism in American Police Departments.
Even small departments started acquiring armored vehicles, heavier weapons and SWAT teams. Of course, one can understand the frustration of the officers at the scene and their department and the desire never to be caught shorthanded like that again. Almost every Police cruiser now carries a shotgun and a Patrol rifle of some sort.
In this National Geographic Video, the event of that day unfold.
[youtube][/youtube]
Please also ignore the uninformed, unresearched references to AK47 ammunition. It is after all what goes for journalism these days (even at the National Geographic). One phone call to a gun shop could have got the authors the correct info. but it sounds more sensational to say "armor piercing" ammo and imply that it was specially imported. The standard Russian "ball" as supplied to their forces and imported into this country has been steel cased, with steel jacketed bullets. Nowadays you can buy regular hunting rounds in 7.62 X 39 but the vast majority of cheap, surplus ammo for the AK available here has the standard steel jacketed bullet.