Archives for June 2016

F.B.I. Awards Glock New Duty Pistol Contract!

The new F.B.I. Glock 17M (photo courtesy of our friends at TFB.com).

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has just awarded an $85 million contract to Glock for the procurement of thousands of new Glock 9mm handguns for duty use by FBI Agents. The new Glock pistols will be 9mm, rather than the current .40 caliber FBI Glocks, but will be modified slightly to meet the RFP restrictions. This announcement came much sooner than we expected, however with Glock being the FBI’s current pistol supplier, I can see how a decision could be made more quickly. The official Contract Award Number is: DJF-16-1200-V-0006459.

Several months ago we posted an article titled “FBI Selects New Duty Pistol“, which discussed the FBI Request For Proposals on a new duty handgun. In the article we pointed out a series of design specifications that eliminated almost every major handgun available on the market at that time. That is, except for the Sig Sauer P320. The RFP appeared almost tailor-made for the newest striker-fired polymer framed pistol from Sig Sauer, which had gained considerable attention after release. Well, I was wrong! And I’m actually very excited I was wrong, because we’re getting a look at an all new Glock in short course.

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U.S. 10th Circuit: Taser Drive-Stuns Can Be Excessive Force

By Aaron Leave a Comment

The U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver, Colorado.

The United States 10th Circuit Court of Appeals has recently decided the case of Perea v. Baca and City of Albuquerque. The result will likely have widespread impact on officers across the country. The excessive force lawsuit against Albuquerque, New Mexico police officers was based on the officers use of a TASER™, mostly in “drive-stun” mode, during their attempt to subdue a mentally unstable subject. The U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled against the officers, and their decision paid particular distinction between use of force during a well-being check versus use of force during an arrest.

The use of the Taser as an intermediate control weapon has been widely used by law enforcement agencies around the world, not just in the United States. However, the use of the Taser in the U.S. has seen particularly harsh responses by some groups. The death of suspects after a Taser use has been called reckless homicide by some, while vehemently defended by the company as scientifically unproven. In deed, most of the Taser deaths absent some other factor (like falling) involved persons with high mixtures of controlled and other drugs in their systems.

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Officer Safety: Gun Grab During Interview

By Aaron Leave a Comment

The City of Cleveland Police have around 1550 officers.

The City of Cleveland Police has around 1550 officers.

A few weeks ago a suspect was arrested for Murder in Cleveland, Ohio. Officers transported him to the police station for an interrogation by detectives. Once at the police station he was led to a video recorded interrogation room where a uniformed officer was present to guard him. At one point someone off camera instructs the uniformed officer to remove the handcuffs from the suspect. The officer moves behind the suspect and begins to accomplish this task.

What happens next is one of the most horrific threats an officer can face – a motivated suspect grabbing for his handgun. Though seemingly implausible inside the police station, this act should stand as a strong reminder to officers that suspect control must remain a top priority even in areas considered relatively safe like the police station or Detention area.

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New G2 Research Trident .308 Cartridge

By Aaron 1 Comment

G2 Research has just announced the release of their new Trident .308 round. The Trident will incorporate several G2 Research innovations in bullet design, and will come in the lighter 150-grain bullet weight. Though particularly designed for big game hunting, the G2 Research Trident is a cartridge with serious law enforcement sniper applications as well.

G2 Research is a relatively new ammunition manufacturer out of Georgia, but I can tell you they have made big waves in the industry after showing off the performance of their rounds at the annual SHOT Show. Basing their cartridges on an all copper bullet with aggressive side cuts, the expansion of several G2 Research bullets have been extremely impressive.

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Father’s Day Gift Ideas

By Aaron Leave a Comment

Happy Father’s Day from the BlueSheepDog Crew. The importance of a good father in the family unit is so critical to well-balanced and disciplined children that we wanted to take time to recognize our fathers. We completely love our mothers, and there are plenty wearing the badge and holding the line, so please don’t be offended at this posting ladies. Instead, help us celebrate the figure that inspires us, holds us accountable, and keeps us on the straight and narrow. The man who teaches us right and wrong, how to fix things, and the importance of providing for family. Men can bring the logical approach to life’s struggles, while women often help us understand our emotional side.

So today, June 19th, let us take time to thank our fathers for all they have done for us. Give dad a call, or better yet, take him out for lunch or dinner. Why not make it a full day of fun – shooting, fishing, a good BBQ, and maybe some funny reflections on times past and present. If you’re close, visit the old school, the old neighborhood, and maybe retrace some old hang-outs. Whatever you do make memories with such an important figure in your life. If your father was not around, consider spending the day with a man whose influence has been instrumental in the course of your life.

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New CRKT Acquisition Knife

By Aaron 1 Comment

Columbia River Knife & Tool (CRKT) has just introduced their latest knife, the Acquisition. What has come to be expected from CRKT, the Acquisition is a combination of fine craftsmanship, unique features, and high quality materials. The Acquisition comes as a fixed blade knife, or an optional folding knife. The uniquely designed grip scales are particularly designed for users who expect to be in the elements, muddy, or even bloody conditions.

EDITOR’S NOTE:

If you’ve been a reader of BlueSheepDog for any amount of time you know we are big fans of CRKT products. The author owns a half-dozen CRKT products, and has found each to be well made and worthy of being an every-day-carry (EDC). However, for transparency, CRKT does not pay for advertising on BlueSheepDog and we are not in any negotiations to start. CRKT did not pay us for this article, and the article is merely informational as we have not had a chance to get our hands on the Acquisition yet – but we will! Almost all of our income comes from Google site traffic, and Amazon affiliated purchases from the links embedded in our articles. So if you decide to buy a product please use the link from our site.

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Analysis of the Orlando “Lone Wolf” Terrorist Attack

By Aaron 3 Comments

Dozens of officers from multiple agencies responded. Coordination of actions will become key to success.

Dozens of officers from multiple agencies responded. Coordination of actions becomes key to success, but Patrol must be trained to act immediately.

In the early morning hours of Sunday, June 12th, 2016 an American-born, alleged radicalized Muslim terrorist walked into Pulse, a LGBT bar in Orlando, Florida and committed the worst mass murder in the U.S. since the 9/11 attacks. A Orlando Police officer working at Pulse in a uniformed, off-duty security capacity, engaged the suspect with his sidearm shortly after the first shots rang out. However, based upon early reports, it appears the murderer’s rifle fire (and the very crowded venue) was enough to keep the off-duty officer from effectively engaging the threat, bringing on a horrific scene of multiple killings.

The Orlando Police Department and Orange County Sheriff’s Department responded quickly, but after dozens of deaths and injuries, the terrorist herded a large group of hostages into the women’s restroom where a nearly three-hour stand-off ensued. We’ll break down the nightmare dynamics of an active shooter event turned barricaded hostage taking dilemma.

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Officer Safety: Fentanyl, “Unprecedented Risk”!

By Aaron Leave a Comment

The Drug Enforcement Administration is the chief Federal illegal drug enforcer (photo by DEA).

The United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has just released an Officer Safety Bulletin warning officers on the extremely dangerous exposure risks to the drug Fentanyl. The first warning went out in March, 2015, but the continued risk posed to law enforcement, first responders, and the public at large, has led the Federal agency to send out a second warning. This has come on the heels of dozens of Fentanyl overdose deaths from users, and several near misses with law enforcement officers exposures during investigations.

Fentanyl is a synthetic narcotic analgesic (opioid) used in the treatment of chronic or severe pain. The drug is extremely potent with a rapid onset, but only a short duration. Fentanyl is extremely dangerous, though it has a genuine medical purpose allowing it to have a Schedule II controlled substance rating. Fentanyl is roughly 80-100 times more potent than morphine, and even 40-50 times more potent than pharmaceutical grade heroin! Generally used as an anesthetic or analgesic (in a highly diluted form), Fentanyl has had tremendous positive effects for those suffering from higher levels of cancer or those with battlefield (severe) injuries.

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Police Firearms: West Coast Majors

By Aaron 5 Comments

The Author on duty (Issued a Glock 22 .40 S&W).

The Author is issued a Glock 22 (.40 S&W), Benelli M1 Super 90 (12-gauge) shotgun, and Rock River Arms AR-15 (5.56mm) patrol rifle.

BlueSheepDog has received a few requests from our readers asking about what firearms different police agencies have selected for their officers. These requests have not gone unheard, and we have been diligently researching the answers to your questions. In this new series, “Police Firearms”, BSD will examine what America’s law enforcement officers are carrying on duty and perhaps why those firearms were selected.

The selection of a firearm is no small decision. The size, weight, capacity, and accuracy are all serious considerations to make when your life and the life of others are on the line. In the early years it was not uncommon for officers to have to purchase their own firearms, so the type and model carried varied widely.

By around the mid 20th century many major police agencies had determined it was safer, more cost-effective, and generally easier to purchase and issue officers a specific (or narrow list) of firearms to carry on duty. This allowed Department Armorers and Firearms Trainers to master only a few firearms. It also allowed Departments to select calibers to meet their needs and reduce the cost of trying to provide multiple types of ammunition to its officers.

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Strike Industries Glock Universal Mount

By Aaron 4 Comments

Strike Industries is quickly becoming a go-to accessory manufacturer.

Strike Industries has just released their Glock Universal Mount (G.U.M.). This universal optics mount is designed for shooters who are moving to reflex optics on their pistols. The Glock Universal Mount is specifically designed for Glock handguns, but the outstanding feature is the G.U.M. is not tailored to one specific optic. Rather the G.U.M. will accommodate the majority of popular reflex pistol sights on the market today in a very low profile mount.

Strike Industries is all about making firearms more functional and easy to use. The Glock Universal Mount (G.U.M.) appears to meet the company’s goal for one of America’s most popular handguns in the world. With the incredibly fast growing area of reflex pistol sights, this accessory could become very profitable for Strike Industries.

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