Originally Posted By: MDinana
Rebuttal time!
1) I wasn't giving stats, just personal observation. However, aside from the guy who died in the ED, and the guy with 14 shots in the ICU, most of them were still mobile. In fact, I'd say that the most debilitated, in terms of being a non-threat, were the 3 femur fractures, the two eye injuries, and a few of the chest shots. A couple abdomen wounds were still pretty mobile. That being said, "Ambulatory" doesn't equal "legitamite threat."

2) Calibers are all over the place. It's also hard to tell after the bullet is deformed, or penetrated through a person. However, all the shotgun wounds so far have been less than fatal (suprisingly). The one person hit with buckshot probably could have kept running, had 1 pellet not broken his femur. It seems that pistol calibers are, therefore, unreliable in predicting the actual damage inflicted (by choosing based on "number" alone). Even the person shot in the forehead was awake, alert, and moving all extremities when they arrived.

3) That's pretty depressing. Better practice reloading, or getting a gun with a big magazine.

My point, not even typed, was that I've seen a bunch of people shot, and most have lived to discharge home. So, don't automatically assume a gun will kill/stop a person intent on harm. Even multiple hits, on a non-drugged person, won't necessarily eliminate a threat. Be aware of that, and don't make assumptions about a gun's capability.


1 & 2. Again, the debate here is whether a big caliber is more effective than a small caliber. If you don't know which calibers were used on your patients, then your information is incomplete and therefore irrelevent. My guess (and this is only a guess) would be that the majority are 9mm since that's the most popular caliber in the United States.

3. That was what I said originally. If you need more than 6 shots, then you're better off using a machine gun because your aim sucks. But his reply to me was that even the police, who have more firearms training than the average citizen, are inaccurate under duress.


Edited by CityBoyGoneCountry (07/21/08 10:24 PM)