Reddit reviews Jim Cirillo's Tales Of The Stakeout Squad

> he said there hasn't been an ambush on an MOS like this in NYC since the 70s.

Yup, Black Panthers, I remember reading about that in Tales of the Stakeout Squad (great book, Cirillo is a hell of a character and knew a lot about gunfighting). I recall that they actually bombed station houses.

side note, if you haven't read the two books about his career, I highly recommend them. (His biography and his autobiography/memoir)

>I would disagree with the guy up there who said this was a marksmanship shot, though.

The officer's marksmanship was considerably better than that of the deceased, I would contend.

>There's practically no way to hit a head sized target under stress.

Sure there is. This video is proof of that. It's a small, rapidly moving target, but it's no different than hitting any other ~ 6-8 inch circle under stress.

It's certainly not easy, but it's not impossible, especially at seven feet.

Here's Hickok45 hitting shots 3, 4, 6, and 7, and 11 of a 12 round string on a steel gong at 230 yards with a compact model Glock.

Now, a static range on a stationary target that isn't trying to kill you certainly isn't a proper simulation of combat. However, people also make headshots with regularity in USPSA and IDPA competition, where there can be considerable stress and pressure and moving targets (again, not equal to combat, I'll admit).

Combat evidence is sparse, but we do have this video (for one example).

Further, Jim Cirillo, veteran of numerous police involved gunfights, reports being able to see the serrations on his front sight before discharging a round in one gunfight.

Precision shooting, when necessary, is absolutely possible. It's just very difficult.

> your entire body works against it.

You get vasoconstriction in the extremities, some loss of fine motor skill, a slight hunching of the posture, tachypsychia, tunnel vision, auditory exclusion, and tremor.

But combat shooting is not bullseye shooting, and modern practical shooting systems (such as those used principally in USPSA and IDPA competitions) account for and incorporate the effects of stress in their methodology; Massad Ayoob, who has served as a chairman of the American Society of Law Enforcement Trainers (ASLET) among other distinctions, developed a system known as stressfire centered around just this principle, and it (and similar methodologies) work well.

>And no modern combat shooting training ever emphasizes headshots

They're absolutely included as a possibility in most of the major civilian training systems I've familiar with and in law enforcement training.

I know for a fact that Massad Ayoob Group covers them, and they're addressed in Tactical Anatomy.

John Farnam teaches the zipper method, which involves placing your shots in an ascending vertical line up the midline of the body; the natural conclusion of this progression would be the head, though it is admittedly the last targeted area.

The Mozambique drill, which has fallen out of favor lately (probably for its glorification by some media types and shady characters), also known as the Failure Drill, is included in some marksmanship manuals.

Not to include the head would be foolish, given the possibility of cover and/or body armor getting in the way, or the potential need for an 'instant stop'; the sort of shot that interrupts the CNS for decisive and instant stoppage when you need to (for example) prevent the assailant's finger from contracting on a trigger. (A hostage situation would be one such hypothetical scenario.)

I'll agree that the center of torso mass (or possibly pelvis) is preferable depending on the circumstances, but to say that 'no modern combat shooting training ever emphasizes headshots' is not accurate.

It's a tool that is absolutely included in the toolbox.

>The officer hitting the head was, in all likelihood, coincidence and luck (though his rapid reaction and ability to hit man was not.)

The great thing about being a practiced shooter is, if you pull shots off, you are more likely to pull them high or low (into the head and neck or stomach and pelvis) than left or right.

Whether the shot was directed at COM or head (we can't know that), it was good marksmanship on the officer's part.

Meanwhile, the rounds the assailant was firing were off target to one side, landing impotently on the side of the vest and the arm.