Apparently Handguns are Ineffective at Close Range

We have "summer patrolmen" on the Cape. Mostly in the Hyannis area is where you'll see them. I think they're fresh out of the acadamy, or possibly even still in the acadamy. I'm not sure.

As a teenager I remember strolling down Main street with some friends (not causing trouble mind you, just window shopping and grabbing a slice at Spiritus and what not) and more than once I had a summer cop stop and interrogate me about some rediculous thing. The one that made actually laugh out loud was one of these guys grabbed me by the arm as they passed me on the sidewalk and asked my if my black boots were steel-toe. I said "Uh, yes they are."
He said something to the effect of: "That's a reinforced shod foot. Those are illegal." I couldn't help it. I just laughed. I think he was about to arrest me when his [STRIKE]butt[/STRIKE] beat buddy suggest they continue on. [hmmm]

Seriously, no offense to LEO, this guy was just aching to be super cop.
 
I personally think that it was more humane to shoot the cat than to drive it to vet hospital, which is an hour away. I would probably do the same thing.
Probably he gave 4 shoot to make sure the anmal is certainly dead.
 
You guys are reading this that he fired 4 and 3 were misses. I sorta read it that he put all 4 into the cat.
 
The call was at 11:45pm. If this time is correct then he may have gotten back to the station after midnight and all this transpired late at night.

The shooting may have been outside at night under less than ideal lighting conditions. If that was the case...even with a fatal shot on the 1st round, I'm not sure I would fire one round then inspect closely to see if its dead and repeat. I would probably want to fire enough rounds to know for sure the job is finished.
 
Most police dont have a clue how to humanly put down any animal especially something as small as a cat.

Most of us know where the vital organs are for a human.

HOWEVER, unless you are a hunter or study biology (4-legged animal kind), a human is much less likely to know where those vital organs are on any given animal.

5) I saw a police officer miss a skunk that was sitting still. He shot it at a distance of about 20 feet with a .22 rifle, so not all officers are capable of hitting a quarter sized target with a handgun, and that's what you'd need to guarantee a hit to the central nervous system.

See my comment above. I'm not a hunter, was a PO (that luckily never had to do this) and readily admit that I don't know where the vital zones are in 4-legged critters.

TTBOMK, the police academies don't train officers in animal biology, so they are left to their own devices to learn what works and what doesn't.

What the hell is a "summer patrolman"? Is it like a summer intern?

Or is it something like this?

View attachment 5585

In P'town, that's likely what they look like! [rofl] [laugh2] [laugh]

As a serious answer, Summer Police have ~2 weeks training by the PD before being let out on the street. I suspect that they have to have graduated at least the Reserve/Intermittent Academy. I did the R/I Academy ~25 years ago but I seriously doubt that they teach about shooting animals (they didn't when I took it).

And for those castigating the Chief of Wellfleet:

- Rich is a shooter and 2A supporter,
- He was asked for a quote, but the event did NOT occur in his jurisdiction,
- The critics in this thread are missing his point . . . parallax exists in a big way if you use your sights at close in distances. They teach "point shooting" for "bad breath" distances when dealing with a perp, but unless you shoot at contact distances to an animal (AND KNOW the vital locations), it could account for hits that miss vital organs. I won't speak for Rich, but I think that was the point he was trying to make.
 
Really? I'm pretty sure if you concentrated just a little bit you can hit it pretty easily. I think most people here could do a 4" target at 30 feet pretty easily.

Sure, but I didn't say 30 feet, I said "at close range on the ground". I'm making an assumption that the cat was basically at his feet (or more likely a few feet away on a mound of dirt, given that it was a DPW garage). This scenario could result in a miss due to what the Chief described as "lines of sight". 30 feet would be much more in line with what an Officer (and the rest of us) normally train at. I can't speak for anyone else, but I've never tried hitting a very small target (ie: critical hit on a cat) with a handgun at very close ranges (afaik, most close-in training is center-of-mass on a human-sized target)

I can easily picture the cop lining up what he thought was a perfect, humane shot based on his practice at normal distances, and have the round land either low or high.
 
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If you have ever tried to dispatch a cat with a gun of any kind you will know that they are very hard to kill. They are a tough animal and must have a brain the size of a b-b. Being raised on a farm I have had my share of incidences where we wanted an animal put down. Cats are the hardest you can bet!
 
I bet the cop was a bit limp wristed and missed.

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Sure, but I didn't say 30 feet, I said "at close range on the ground". I'm making an assumption that the cat was basically at his feet (or more likely a few feet away on a mound of dirt, given that it was a DPW garage). This scenario could result in a miss due to what the Chief described as "lines of sight". 30 feet would be much more in line with what an Officer (and the rest of us) normally train at. I can't speak for anyone else, but I've never tried hitting a very small target (ie: critical hit on a cat) with a handgun at very close ranges (afaik, most close-in training is center-of-mass on a human-sized target)

I can easily picture the cop lining up what he thought was a perfect, humane shot based on his practice at normal distances, and have the round land either low or high.

I'm not trying to argue distances, only that if someone put an object at a reasonable distance to them, they should have no problem hitting the target.

Kind of like playing billiards and someone scratches. Put the que ball where want and you should make your shot...unless you're a bad shot.

I've shot at 6" targets only a few feet away and there is really no difference in acquiring sights.
 
If you have ever tried to dispatch a cat with a gun of any kind you will know that they are very hard to kill. They are a tough animal and must have a brain the size of a b-b. Being raised on a farm I have had my share of incidences where we wanted an animal put down. Cats are the hardest you can bet!

Ok...now I really want to go find a cat that needs to be put down.
 
My intention was not for this to devolve into a thread with random, off-topic postings but rather to foster a discussion based on insightful and informative points such as the below.

. . . parallax exists in a big way if you use your sights at close in distances. They teach "point shooting" for "bad breath" distances when dealing with a perp, but unless you shoot at contact distances to an animal (AND KNOW the vital locations), it could account for hits that miss vital organs. I won't speak for Rich, but I think that was the point he was trying to make.

For what it's worth I know that certain towns, such as Arlington, do not allow officers to use their side arms to euthanize wound animals. They are instructed to use the shotguns in their patrol cars.
 
I agree with those who note that killing an animal quickly is not easy, particularly a small one. If I were forced to put down a mortally wounded cat I would go with a shotgun to the head.

A few years ago I was on my farm in the midwest when a rabid raccoon was found staggering around the barn during the day, acting very unlike a healthy raccoon. With dogs and other animals around, we decided to put it down. The nearest handy gun was a 10/22, loaded with 10 rounds of CCI stingers. I put one into it at 10 yards or so, and that slowed it down enough to get close safely. I then put 3 in the head, clear hits, at a few yards. I ended up emptying the mag, with the raccoon only clearly dead after round 8 or so.
 
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For what it's worth I know that certain towns, such as Arlington, do not allow officers to use their side arms to euthanize wound animals. They are instructed to use the shotguns in their patrol cars.

I forget who I was talking to, but it was an LEO who said that their town uses Glaser safety slugs to do the job (euthanizing animals) and quite effectively.
 
similar experience >>

I saw a badly injured opposum on the road in a metrowest town close to rt.128 several years ago at night. I called the local PD to let them know and the sarcastic response was "What do you want us to do? Shoot it?" I said that or transport by the animal control officer was exactly what I expected.

Similar experience in watertown, except public works actually showed up. I called local PD to report an injured opposum in the middle of the road on Watertown St. It was flopping around, and looked to be pretty smashed up -- breathing heavy, making shrieking sounds, etc. It was late at night and I was very tempted to use my pellet air gun and put it down, but quickly realized I would have been cuffed and stuffed. So I waited about 20 minutes expecting a cop, but public works showed up and smashed it with a shovel, then ran over it with his truck.

that was MUCH more humane.

*sigh*
 
So I waited about 20 minutes expecting a cop, but public works showed up and smashed it with a shovel, then ran over it with his truck.

that was MUCH more humane.

*sigh*


Agree, once I had to kill a badly injured animal because it was no way to bring it to a vet or to anyone who is qualified to perform ethanasia. As a veterinary professional, I feel that immediate ending of animal's suffering is more important than following a correct procedure for it.
 
I have seen a case where someone shot a small animal similar to a cat with a 22. It took about 15 rounds to dispatch the animal. There was smoke coming out of it's mouth and any other hole that was put into that animal. These animals are tough. Shots 2-4 may have just been a reaction to the nervous system going. I also know of a case of a slaughtered bull hanging from its achiles tendons, headless, and still spinning around and kicking while hanging up in the air. It was a big stink over a little cat. Fitting for P-town really.... Big stinkers and practically no errmmmm kitties [smile]
 
shot

If any one has shot a cat,they would know some still move after a head shot.I have put down a number and will tell you a 22 is better than a 30/30.
and I dont miss.at close range a pistol can be off a few inches,depending where it has been sighted.I dont like to do it but here it needs doing and dogs as well.people throw dogs and cats out,and they go wild.I have two cats.a female that my first cat brought to me and then went away and must have died.she had kittens and I kept one.shes been fixed.so I dont like to kill them.my animals here have all been strays that were abandoned.
 
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