Why officers carry sidearms

Pocket carry has a great deal going for it. You should not carry a naked gun in your pocket as there is too much chance that something will get inside the trigger guard and discharge the weapon. Always use a pocket holster. These range from expensive, custom-made models to inexpensive synthetic versions available in any gun shop.

They all serve the purpose, and your choice should be dictated by comfort, concealment, cost and how well they fit your gun and pocket. The only real drawback of pocket-carry is that access is difficult while seated. Ankle holsters. These are not recommended for carrying your primary weapon, either on- or off-duty. These require you to bend over and remain stationary while drawing, which severely inhibits your ability to fight during real-world, close-in spontaneous attacks.

Other reminders Carrying a gun off-duty is not an end in itself. It is part of a system of self-defense. As a part of that system, remember to also carry:. Beaverton, OR www. Ghost Inc. Miami, FL www. More Product news. More Product Originals. More Police Firearms Articles. All Distributors. More Police Firearms Deals. Make Police1 your homepage. Download a brochure now! Staccato P From Staccato. Police Products Police Firearms.

Email Print. This article from was updated by PoliceOne Staff in December By Ralph Mroz For years, respected law enforcement trainers and training organizations have stressed the importance of carrying a firearm off duty. Add your own thoughts on off-duty carry in the comments section below. Thank You! Latest Product News Transforming public safety through technology. New fentanyl testing strips aim to bring low-cost, powerful detection to public safety.

Spotlight: SwabTek's tests provide a simple and safe means to presumptively field test for threat compounds, narcotics and explosives by police. How in-car video systems benefit law enforcement eBook. The U. Army lives with weapons but they aren't casual about them. This applies both on and off the base.

If you can't qualify on the Army shooting range, the Atlantic says , you don't get walk around with a gun at all. Department of Defense regulations say if you carry your Army-issued sidearm on base as part of your official duties, you put it away afterward in an armory, a secure storage area or your home.

You don't get to strut around with it off the job, except when traveling to and from your official duties. If you have a personal weapon with you, the base commander will set his or her own rules for that, Military. Many commanders won't let you bring personal weapons on base, or require you to register them and store them in a base facility. Other bases require you to keep your personal guns in a safe if you live in on-base housing.

There are exceptions to the general restrictions: military police and civilian police on base can carry weapons whether concealed or open, for instance.

Another way to do it would be to substitute some of those sworn police officers for civilians within the force similarly, again, trained to do certain things.

It seems to me that we don't, but this also brings up an important point, which is, again, police officers are authorized to carry out certain laws and there is a proliferation of relatively low-level ordinances, offenses and the like that police officers are authorized to carry out with force.

And I think once we start taking a look at it from that end, we can put a little bit of responsibility, maybe a lot of responsibility on city councils and legislatures to be much more specific about what police are authorized to do when carrying out these kinds of offenses and ordinances. Many of them don't need to be enforced by forcible arrest. And I imagine that once we start cutting off the legal authorization for police to use forceful arrest, we will see an impact on police use of guns as well.

Chris Bentley produced and edited this story for broadcast with Tinku Ray. Allison Hagan adapted it for the web. Skip to main content. Close close Donate. Listen Live: Reveal. Close Close. Reveal Value this story?