A girl I know is an Assistant D A in a Texas city. She has never owned a firearm, and now her life has been threatened and she is going to begin carrying. She has asked for my recommendation as to a carry weapon. I am going to suggest a Sig Sauer P229 in 40S&W along with the proper training of course. Does anyone have any other suggestions before I communicate this to her?
1) If she has medium or small-sized hands, the double-stack 229 will be too big for her, and the DA trigger pull may be too stiff as well.
2) .40 has significantly more recoil than 9mm in most medium-sized guns. For a novice, 9mm is a better choice.
3) A 229 is a pretty darn big gun for most people to conceal.
4) The DA/SA transition takes a fair bit of training to master. For a novice, she may be better off with a gun that has a consistent trigger pull -- e.g., Glock, Sig DAK, HK LEM, etc.
There are many good guns, but she'll have to figure out what fits her hand and works best for her. What works for you may not work for her.
Furthermore, what is far, far, FAR more important than her choice of gun is the training she receives. If she gets the gun, puts 50 rounds down range, and proceeds to carry it around in her purse, it will be next to useless for her.