Help us pick a pistol, for LEO.

Glock 17, no reason to carry a 19 on duty since concealability isn't a factor.

He may think 9mm is wimpy, but a little schooling can change that.

Studies have concluded that as far as stopping threats, 9mm, .40, and .45 are equally as effective. With that said, 9mm with it's softer recoil allows for faster followup shots, and that equates to tighter groups in rapid fire. The extra capacity doesn't hurt either.

There is a reason the FBI, who are the reason the .40 even exists, are dropping the .40 round all together and going back to 9mm, and that's because the 9mm allows for more effective shooting. Bullet weight and velocity are a small part of the equation, the bigger part is how well you can put those rounds on target, and with 9mm in rapid fire, it's a clear winner.
 
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Glock 17, no reason to carry a 19 on duty since concealability isn't a favtor.
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Except the 19 can be a good Off duty pistol as well. 1 gun, multiple uses. A beginning LEOs salary doesnt leave a lot of expendable income for purchasing lots of guns.

Again, its a little premature to buy ANYTHING. He needs to get hired and find out what THAT agency authorizes for carry, on and off duty id be surprised if the mid-frame Glock (19,23) is not on the list
 
If he's already familiar with a revolver (You mentioned a .22) and, if its DA. A Sig P220/229/226 with the DAK trigger would be a great fit.

But, as many others have mentioned, it may be putting the cart before the horse at this point.
 
I gotta tell you I am not a Glockophile but the G22 and G23 work real well. Some people did get an ill opinion when the Gen 1 first came out and bad raps stick to guns forever. Now we are 33 years later and on the Gen 4, all the bugs got worked out long ago.

I'd say get the list, including the issue caliber. Then make your choice. They may say Glock, or SIG or M+P and a great deal of that is what the armorer is trained on.

I'd say Glock or M+P, you are not likely to see an XD as an issue weapon. The thing about these is really they are as stupid proof as a gun can be. Stupid proof is good in a fight.
 
Except the 19 can be a good Off duty pistol as well. 1 gun, multiple uses. A beginning LEOs salary doesnt leave a lot of expendable income for purchasing lots of guns.
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While that might be true, with the Glock blue label program you can pick up 2 Glock's for barely over the regular price of one. I have never been a big fan of Jack of all trade guns, you end up compromising one for the other and they don't really excel at any one thing. I would rather have a dedicated duty gun and a dedicated carry gun.
 
Any Decent da/sa gun with a exposed hammer would be my first choice. I'd probably go with a Sig or Beretta...
With some good +p ammo a 9mm can do anything a 40 can.
 
See what the Deprt requires when he gets hired and after Academy. Each PD have different requirements for side arms. A full size 9mm Baretta is usually prefered by women of small stature.
 
Interesting to note, being from Chicago myself, the Chicago Police Directive lists only Glock (various models - no compensator models), XDs (with no thumb safeties) and M&Ps (no extended baseplates, no compensators, no thumb safeties) for hires after Dec. 31, 2009. That is probably a great place to start as those are generally the preferred LE duty guns and in many cases the only approved.

It may also be important to note that, at least in Chicago, all duty firearms are purchased by the officer and then registered with the department. I read an article that they are considering paring down to 9mm only department-wide. A Glock 17 or 19 sounds like a sound choice! I recommend he consider purchasing a smaller and approved auxillary pistol as well.
 
There are so many good guns today, you may do better to ask if anyone has had problems with any model they own.
The Military in every country does extensive research into reliability. Maybe choose one of those used by foreign Governments.

My Glocks have always fired, but then so have My Rugers, Smith and Wesson, and Taurus. The only problem guns I have owned are the Beretta Nano 9mm and the Walther P22 which is not a LE weapon. For deep concealment the Diamondback DB9 has never malfunctioned for me.
 
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If he gets to choose he needs to shoot several to see what he likes the best. Then he needs to spend a lot of time with his choice at the range training.

For me, my first choice would be the M&P 40 caliber. God Bless
 
Having administered entry level tests where often we would get 5-700 applicants for two or three job openings, the written and first interview will lessen the pack to manageable numbers with a long road yet in front of the applicant. The testing/background/hiring process normally takes months to complete with a final list of qualified applicaants provided for administrators to make the final choice (s). I wish your boy luck but have him continue to test with other organizations that are hiring if he wants to narrow his personal odds. I had an easier time when hired as only 104 persons sought two positions, i made one of those and retired partially thirty years later and after another 13 years part time i finally made a clean break.
I loved my service as a Police Officer but If i were pursuing a career today LE would not be on my list.
 
Mike38:

Has your son-in-law handled any CZ handguns, tried the triggers, noticed the engineering/manufacturing quality etc?
The CZ-75 variants might be worth considering, being used by some US police depts., Czech, Slovakian police, Brazil, Russia, Israeli Shin Bet (intell. and their "FBI/MI5" plus their Yamas: Special Ops), Delta Force, among others.

He is familiar with Delta Force, the US Army's counter-terrorist units? They would seem to require the most reliable, effective guns.
When Russia buys and issues a Czech gun, to me that also says something.
 
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I'd suggest a CZ also. If he wants polymer, the P-09 is a good full size choice. If he wants something more compact the P-07, PCR, and P-01 are all good, lighter weight choices.
 
I'm a little late to the party but I'll just add that around here officers do not purchase their duty weapons, the departments issue them. I believe our state law provides that police officers are police officers 24/7, so pretty much all officers carry when off duty -- they may be required to do so, I'm not certain. The departments don't issue weapons for off-duty carry, but they do have guidelines, either in the form of an approved list or an enumeration of specific criteria that the gun must satisfy.

Your son would probably be making a serious mistake buying a gun before he gets placed with a department and knows what they allow or issue. You can't assume that a Glock is always safe. The department on the next town to mine issues SIGs in .45 Auto, single stack. I knew of another agency that was issuing SIGs in .357 SIG.

Tell him to cool his jets until he knows where he'll be working.
 
Good luck to your son!

Ibmikey said:
I wish your boy luck but have him continue to test with other organizations that are hiring if he wants to narrow his personal odds.
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Aguila Blanca said:
Your son would probably be making a serious mistake buying a gun before he gets placed with a department and knows what they allow or issue.
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Very good points indeed, especially considering the vast number of applicants and, the variety of issued sidearms between different agencies and whatnot.

For example, where I live there are three primary options for potential LEO's; one is at local level with either the city or bordering county, both of which issue Glock 22's, and then two at state level, one of which issues Glock 21's whereas the other issues Glock 37's.
 
The percentages are constantly varying. From Glock's website (and we know that isn't updated regularly) the USA % is 65%; but in some states, the percentages are in the 80's; so a particular state could be at 85%.

At a Glock Armorers' class in 2013, the Glock Rep for the western states did say HI and CA were in the 80+% for law enforcement use.
 
There is a lot more to being a police officer than what handgun they carry, something that they are unlikely ever to need. As for the caliber i would go for the most tried tested and used handgun caliber ever the 9 MM. I am not a Glock fan but i can see the attraction to police officer, cheap reliable light and easy to use.
 
Seems to me the easiest option would be for him to follow what other officers carry on whatever force hires him on. Most likely the force will also have LEO discounts with a local supplier.

If you go odd caliber, the force may not provide rounds for training, and I can envision a civil issue if the forces uses .32 PPKs and your S-I-L takes a perp with a Desert Eagle .50.
 
Personally, I would recommend he buy something he would be willing to carry OFF duty. And a smaller platform makes a good argument for a 9mm, especially with a new shooter. Tiny little 40 cal's can get brutal in the recoil department.

Whatever department he ends up at, assuming he makes it through all the red tape, may or may not allow whatever service size gun he buys. But I believe most police departments are more lenient on off duty weapons, and it gives him something to practice with in the meantime. Not to mention it can serve as a CCW weapon (he has a permit) as well.
 
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