This will come as a shock to WEERD, maybe.
People carrying guns that I approve of and wholeheartedly support. And now they're getting bigger bangier guns. I'd makea comment about STOPPING POWER and other things like that but I admit I have no idea about any of it.
http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/victoria-police-switches-to-semiautomatic-weapons-20100429-tt44.html
Victoria Police officers will no longer carry revolvers as it switches to rapid-firing semi-automatic weapons.
FACTBOX: .40 calibre Smith and Wesson M & P pistol
Deputy Commissioner Kieran Walshe this morning revealed police would be rearmed with .40 calibre Smith and Wesson M & P (military and police) semi-automatic pistols.
‘‘The decision was not one that was made lightly, and followed an extensive investigation by an independent panel into their potential use and viability within Victoria Police,’’ he said.
South Australian Police have been using Smith & Wesson semi-automatics since last year.
The force called for tenders for holsters for the semi-automatics in January, saying that while it was studying the bids, it expected to finalise details for the purchase of the guns.
"It is Victoria Police's intention to select a supplier of suitable holsters for semi-automatic pistols as soon as possible," the tender document released at the time said.
In June 2008, then chief commissioner Christine Nixon announced that operational officers would receive semi-automatic pistols. She had previously expressed reservations on the switch from the "solid performing" .38 Smith & Wesson.
At the time she also said she was concerned with accidental discharge, training and weapon selection, adding that a decision on a new gun would take time.
A police spokeswoman said earlier this year: "The semi-automatic procurement process is entering the final stages and we are now in a position to start looking at holster requirements.
"While we can't announce what we have decided to purchase until the final contract is signed, we are asking the market to provide us with what they have available among their makes and models so we can ensure we make the right decision in … purchasing holsters."
Police have said that any holster considered to hold the new weapons must have at least one primary and one secondary retention application.
In 2005, secret tests conducted following the murder of Senior Constable Tony Clarke, who was shot dead with his own gun on the Warburton Highway, exposed dangerous flaws in police firearms equipment.
The tests showed that the dead policeman's gear almost certainly failed in operation.
Constable Clarke was shot dead at Launching Place on April 24, 2005, when he pulled over Mark Bailey, a man with a history of mental illness. Bailey then drove off in an unmarked police car before using the revolver to commit suicide.
http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/victoria-police-switches-to-semiautomatic-weapons-20100429-tt44.html
Victoria Police officers will no longer carry revolvers as it switches to rapid-firing semi-automatic weapons.
FACTBOX: .40 calibre Smith and Wesson M & P pistol
Deputy Commissioner Kieran Walshe this morning revealed police would be rearmed with .40 calibre Smith and Wesson M & P (military and police) semi-automatic pistols.
‘‘The decision was not one that was made lightly, and followed an extensive investigation by an independent panel into their potential use and viability within Victoria Police,’’ he said.
South Australian Police have been using Smith & Wesson semi-automatics since last year.
The force called for tenders for holsters for the semi-automatics in January, saying that while it was studying the bids, it expected to finalise details for the purchase of the guns.
"It is Victoria Police's intention to select a supplier of suitable holsters for semi-automatic pistols as soon as possible," the tender document released at the time said.
In June 2008, then chief commissioner Christine Nixon announced that operational officers would receive semi-automatic pistols. She had previously expressed reservations on the switch from the "solid performing" .38 Smith & Wesson.
At the time she also said she was concerned with accidental discharge, training and weapon selection, adding that a decision on a new gun would take time.
A police spokeswoman said earlier this year: "The semi-automatic procurement process is entering the final stages and we are now in a position to start looking at holster requirements.
"While we can't announce what we have decided to purchase until the final contract is signed, we are asking the market to provide us with what they have available among their makes and models so we can ensure we make the right decision in … purchasing holsters."
Police have said that any holster considered to hold the new weapons must have at least one primary and one secondary retention application.
In 2005, secret tests conducted following the murder of Senior Constable Tony Clarke, who was shot dead with his own gun on the Warburton Highway, exposed dangerous flaws in police firearms equipment.
The tests showed that the dead policeman's gear almost certainly failed in operation.
Constable Clarke was shot dead at Launching Place on April 24, 2005, when he pulled over Mark Bailey, a man with a history of mental illness. Bailey then drove off in an unmarked police car before using the revolver to commit suicide.