# Tactical Use of Light



## mercop (Jan 17, 2007)

Figured I should stick to something I know a little about for my first thread. The tactical use of light. I am a full time SWAT / Patrol officer working in a pretty busy area 30 miles of Baltimore between RT 40 and RT 95. 

I break down my tactical use of light into three areas-

Street contacts- typical walking up to people on self initiated contacts or response to calls. 6P carried in reaction hand. Most people get a slight blast of light in the face to see what there reaction is. Most of the time this pisses them off and they bring their hands up towards their face letting me see if they are holding anything. Normally I find that they open their hands as if trying to push the light away. This is good since I see palms and if they are trying to hide narcotics. If an assault were to ensue hammer fists into the face/neck, collarbone, chest and hands have proved effective. If I anticipate a problem taking someone into custody I have employed that the tactic of talking to an imaginary person over their shoulder, they turn to look and then look back at me, I give them a blast of light into the face and in that split second they close their eyes and I go hands on. This does not happen all the time but I have used it with good success.

Car stops- unlike what they are teaching in the academy I like to stop cars in the darkest areas I can so that I control all the light. I use my high beams; take down lights and spotlight to illuminate the suspect car. If done correctly you could film a picture behind the wall of light and the suspect could not see anything. I will make contact at the passenger side window being sure to never cross the path of my lights. 

Building calls- working in the ghetto so long I seldom even attempt to find light switches and turn them on since they seldom work and just use my light. On a side not most light switches can be found approx 3.5 to 4 feet off the floor about 10-12 inches from the door frame. Good to know in the dark. When clearing rooms lights are used to strobe and never turned constant on until contact is made with a suspect. When clearing a house care must be taken to remember that you will get massive splash and reflections from mirrors and TVs. The reflection will have the same effect on you as it does the bad guy (blind the poop out of you if you fixate on it). 

As previously stated my 1st line duty light is a SF 6P with a P60 bulb. I usually go through two batteries a month on nights. This is because of not using it for constant on. The eyes are the same as using pressure points. If you over stimulate them they will adapt to the stimuli. That is why I find it best to strobe for the best distraction.

When I am searching something I will go to an LED light Fenix or Gerber X5 since I need to only see, not stun.

After much research I settled on the SF L2 for off duty since most of the time all I need is the LED to navigate by but under stress you can use the reg lamp. Another plus I that the L2 is the closest light to being the same size a kubaton.

For tactical applications I don’t like any clickie tail caps since if you are hit and the light is “on”. Not a huge concern but big enough for me.

These are just some random thoughts.


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## FrogsInWinter (Jan 17, 2007)

Wow, great info. Thanks very much for sharing!


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## Arkayne (Jan 17, 2007)

Damn good info. Welcome to CPF!


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## ScooterBug (Jan 17, 2007)

great post.


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## DasRonin (Jan 17, 2007)

What certifications do you have, and where did you get certified?


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## mercop (Jan 17, 2007)

Been through some low light courses. Nobody big time. Most of their stuff came from the Surefire Institute. Two of my closest training partners are full time NYPD firearms and tactics guys and SF certified. Besides my MA training over the last 9 yrs I have been to around 40 specialized couses from Firearms to Negotiations and am certified to teach at the state and federal levels. My area of expetise is human conflict within seven yards with the open hand, stick, knife and gun. The stuff in my first post is some of what I have come up with and teach. 

Many trainers and academies would cringe at me saying to stop cars in dark areas. My stick and knife stuff goes against the grain so why should low light be any different


The first Skill Set of my Counter Attack Training is Open Hand and Impact Weapons. I advise people to have a pen in their hand during the day and a flashlight in their hand at night. A decent light is my absolute favorite weapon.


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## DasRonin (Jan 17, 2007)

How does someone get certified at the federal level?

I understand the light at night, but why the pen in the day?


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## mercop (Jan 18, 2007)

Teach at a DOD Police Academy.

No matter how cold it is most attackers will have there face, neck and hands unprotected and the three things needed to carry out an attack are sight, base and air. With a pen or flashlight in your hands you can use the concentrated force of the the weapon on the small surface areas of these targets to defend yourself. 

The most important thing about a weapon is to have it when you need it. Drawing in the slow part. Even in the most secure areas it attracts no attention to have a pen or flashlight in your hand. How much better could it get then to carry around a piece of aircraft aluminum


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## 65535 (Jan 18, 2007)

To write up tickets and such.


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## mercop (Jan 18, 2007)

Nah, that is what the dome light is for.


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## 65535 (Jan 18, 2007)

A well placed pen shot can really really hurt.


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## supes (Jan 18, 2007)

Excellent post! I agree with the non-clickie tailcaps for those times when the light is needed for more extreme situations. Plus, I think the clickie is not proven as much as the momentary on/off yet, esp. with some of them failing and getting stuck, plus the noise of that "click."

PM sent with some questions.


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## Northern Lights (Jan 18, 2007)

mercop said:


> Nah, that is what the dome light is for.


 
Your first post is true to life, I like to blast the eyeballs at least once with lots of lumens, been using about 900 t-Ls lately.

But after all that tactical bravado, really, you would go back into the car and write a ticket under the dome light? Maybe in bad weather, but that is how to ruin a perfectly good windshield when something high velocity comes through it.


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## DasRonin (Jan 18, 2007)

Wouldn't a police officer have a difficult time justifying using a pen as a stabbing weapon, when there are so many less lethal weapons available to him/her?

In the case of stopping a car in a very dark place, after the "wall of light" was lost, say by a subject running from the car into the pitch black darkness, work against the officer? Who now is in the area where there is light when the bad guy now is in total darkness. Wouldn't that now give the bad guy the advantage?

This really gets me thinking. How big is the department you are on? How many officers?


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## harddrive (Jan 18, 2007)

DasRonin PM sent


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## Northern Lights (Jan 18, 2007)

DasRonin said:


> Wouldn't a police officer have a difficult time justifying using a pen as a stabbing weapon, when there are so many less lethal weapons available to him/her?
> 
> In the case of stopping a car in a very dark place, after the "wall of light" was lost, say by a subject running from the car into the pitch black darkness, work against the officer? Who now is in the area where there is light when the bad guy now is in total darkness. Wouldn't that now give the bad guy the advantage?
> 
> This really gets me thinking. How big is the department you are on? How many officers?


 


mercop said:


> Many trainers and academies would cringe at me saying to stop cars in dark areas. My stick and knife stuff goes against the grain so why should low light be any differentQUOTE]
> 
> These ideas are not mainstream for sure and of course in extreme survival conditions anything goes but liability judgments indicate the public and courts expect certain limitations on police tactics and behavior and fully expect police to have an upper hand because of proper training. Your conclusions are considered more acceptable by current publications and training venues. *If unique and unproven and mostly unacceptable tactics are employed and there is litigation over the outcome where do you think a jury or administrative judge will side with?* Officers that would deploy some of the tactics described in the aforementioned posts would find an upstream battle to justify those actions in my region in litigation or department policy and procedure standards. Many instructors bearing private organizational certifications as instructors or those holding governmental instructor certifications sometimes go into business for themselves promoting their expertise. To judge the acceptability of a school and its curriculum one need only look to see the past customer list and look for Agency endorsement, the attendance of individuals is not an indices of acceptability.


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## carbine15 (Jan 18, 2007)

I say better to be judged by twelve than carried by six.


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## mercop (Jan 18, 2007)

Northern Lights said:


> Your first post is true to life, I like to blast the eyeballs at least once with lots of lumens, been using about 900 t-Ls lately.
> 
> But after all that tactical bravado, really, you would go back into the car and write a ticket under the dome light? Maybe in bad weather, but that is how to ruin a perfectly good windshield when something high velocity comes through it.




More officers are killed every year in motor vehicle accidents then bullets. Being outside the car is more likely to be deadly in normal situation IMHO.

The last year I really worked hard core (now I do more supervising then call catching) was 2004 and I stopped over 1000 cars that year, most of them at night.

All I did was state how I do things which can be hard to get across in print. We can "what if" all day long. If my aunt had balls she would be my uncle.

I train more civilians than police. That is one of the reasons for my pen and flashlight statements. However, an officer is more likely to have a pen in his hand than just about any other item during a spontanious attack. I would not hesitate to use that pen at least initially until I could do something else.

Dasronin, check your PMs. I work for an approx 40 man dept.


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## Northern Lights (Jan 18, 2007)

mercop said:


> More officers are killed every year in motor vehicle accidents then bullets. Being outside the car is more likely to be deadly in normal situation IMHO.


Good point and that is an acceptable procedure for highway cops. You cut yourself short in your reply regarding the dome light. One situation is not universal, so sometimes a better explanation, especially for anyone not vaguely aware of our circumstances is due. The last time I took incoming fire I was glad I was out of the car and could get away from it.


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## mercop (Jan 18, 2007)

Again, it all depends on when and where. I have written tickets inside and outside of the car. I do a huge ammount of car stops on US Rt 40 and side streets leading to the ghetto off of it. Just depends. Most of the time I use the small map light to write tickets by.

I also agree that one of the big problems I see in force on force training is students hugging what they see as cover that is actually concealment. In many urban settings these days cover is more of a myth since most things are only concealment. I teach movement and fire.


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## harddrive (Jan 18, 2007)

Sorry Mercop, but I have to side with DasRonin and Northern Lights on this one. 

No disrespect intended, but a few of your comments had me scratching my head a bit.

In saying that, I'm sure you are an experienced member that is choosing to use tequniques that you have assessed as being safe and justifiable. I agree it can be difficult getting your point accross in print. I hope you take my comments the right way as they are not intended to be critical.

The only other comment I will make is that discussing specific Police tatcics and procedures on a public forum like this may not be the best idea. While I'm not suggesting the CPF has a large criminal membership, the whole world has access to this site and I would hate to think information posted here might be used for a criminal to gain any sort of advantage against one of our colleges. 

Just my 2 cents worth. Take it as you will.


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## mercop (Jan 18, 2007)

Not a problem, I am not trying to convince anyone. As far as the part about COMSEC OPSEC I have shared nothing that I see as being a leak to criminals especially since it is not SOP. I am no stranger to forums and share a lot of things with at other places and think about what I write before I post. Maybe one day we will train together. Maybe what we have been doing is not working since the ammount of officers killed by gunfire was almost as high as those killed by MVA last year.Thanks for your comments.


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## TENNlight (Jan 18, 2007)

MERCOP,

Welcome to the forum.

It is great to have your views on the use of light. Afterall, not
all lights were designed for camping...
I hope CP members have been further "Enlightened." :goodjob:


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## PoliceScannerMan (Jan 18, 2007)

What a great read! I am assuming you use the 120 lumen P61? 

Now that Seoul emitters are out and about, a solid state light may suit your tatical needs better. Up to 150 lumens and triple the runtime and half the heat of incans.... Just a thought.


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## mercop (Jan 19, 2007)

Thanks, glad some of you like the info.

The absolute most common light I see in use is the SF G2, after that it is the 6P and I have never seen anyone use anything other than the P60 lamp. I have a P61 in my SWAT bag along with spare P60s but have never used it. The major concern for most officers is the cost of the batteries. The P61 lamp would smoke them like a cheap cigar. I would say that just tonight I used my light approx 6-8 times on car stops and such. The one car I did search was done with a Fenix. I have never found the P60 weak.


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## TonkinWarrior (Jan 19, 2007)

Mercop: great post(s), and welcome to CPF.

Your hard-earned Street-Smarts and candor are a welcome breath of fresh air. I hope you'll keep your contributions coming... even if/when they step on delicate toes.

"Truth engenders hatred of truth. As soon as truth appears, it is the enemy."
-- Tertullian, 150-230 A.D.


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## Dan_GSR (Jan 19, 2007)

hey...good to see another USN member
good info bro


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## dudemar (Jan 19, 2007)

mercop said:


> Thanks, glad some of you like the info.
> 
> The absolute most common light I see in use is the SF G2, after that it is the 6P and I have never seen anyone use anything other than the P60 lamp. I have a P61 in my SWAT bag along with spare P60s but have never used it. The major concern for most officers is the cost of the batteries. The P61 lamp would smoke them like a cheap cigar. I would say that just tonight I used my light approx 6-8 times on car stops and such. The one car I did search was done with a Fenix. I have never found the P60 weak.



Cool posts Mercop, all hail the SF 6P!!!!!:naughty::rock:

P61 is awesome, hands down.=)


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## pietruck (Jan 19, 2007)

I'll never understand the need to caution and argue on these boards.

you'd think half of us had blinded ourselves and burned our houses down.

I found your info interesting.

But I never felt the need to rebut any of it.

The concealment/cover statement is interesting.

I am only recently acquainting myself with this sort of thing.

Can you point me towards any good info that develops that?

Thanks


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## mercop (Jan 19, 2007)

Thanks guys, I actually felt that I was getting a poor reception and was not going to post much more. I see that some think it is of use so I appreciate that. 

You can check out http://www.strategosinternational.com/ that is where Ken Good of Surefire fame is now. Some good stuff from them and Surefire. IMHO the only thing that makes anything tactical is that you use it to your advantage. Humans need light to see, so if you can control it to any extent you can change your enviroment and that is awesome.

Boyd's OODA loop (Observe, Orient, Decide and Act) is the loop that explains how we process information whether it be tactical or everyday. If you can stop your attacker from seeing you that you have interupted that loop. When you flash the light in his eyes, you don't stand there and see how long he is distracted by your super kewl custom night sun flash light, you either move in and dominate or haul ***. That is what I am talking about. Again Training over tools. Tools are easy to get, good training is not.

We had a barricade one night on a street that did not offer much cover. Two cars were already in front of the house. I added a third and had all of them put their spotlights on the little house. We were able to move about freely. The house was lit up light a chicken nugget under a hot lamp. When he came out he admitted he could not see anything past the light. I went and looked from his position. It was like looking into the sun. Just because you have not seen something in person or nobody has written a book on it does not mean it will not work. Again thanks for the kind words.


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## matrixshaman (Jan 19, 2007)

Good to see you over here mercop - have you seen this new Surefire 6PD? - has a crenulated bezel on it: http://www.lapolicegear.com/su6pddefl.html 
Thanks for the info here on tactical use of light and such. I had assumed that using a pen would only be done in a situation such as a criminal has jumped you, got you down or is going for your gun and you are in a life threatening situation (which of course is often just a breath away in many cases in your profession) so I didn't see any problem with that concept but than I'm not a LEO either. But it makes sense to me to use anything you have at hand when you are at risk of serious injury or worse. JMHO.


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## dbhn (Jan 19, 2007)

+1 on the kudos. Thanks for the information. The banter back and forth only adds to the quality of the education. 

As a civilian I appreciate this type of sharing/educating. The smallest tid bit of info for the untrained may someday same our lives. 

Keep it up.


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## mercop (Jan 19, 2007)

Many may cringe when I say this but I am not a fan of impact bezels. I am not talking about thouse found on say my new SF SF L2 since they are pretty low key. I am talking about TIDs and things like the SF E2D. For every one time you will use them on a bad guy they will poke, prod and f-up your clothes and skin 1000 times until you stop carrying it. They will also attract a huge ammount of attention from TSA types. I have never had a problem flying with my E2E which was my primary off duty light for the last five years or so.

The other point is that there is a real good chance if someone is attacking you they have the Ninja (HIV and HEP cocktail) affectionately called so by us since it creeps up on you. It is a less lethal incident and all you did was strike him in the face or hand, too bad that opened up some open sores and now his puss and blood is all over you. Yes the same can happen with any bezel but why tempt fate. If I were to hammer fist someone in the face, I mean right between they eyes, I don't think it would matter if the light had an impact bezel or not. A side note, if you do use anything to defend yourself and it comes in contact with the bad guy be sure to offer it to the police for evidence and DNA testing. Even if they refuse to take it that will be a great point for your defense.

About striking with the light and the ladies, most women are grabbed at the beginning of and an assualt. Teach them to have the light or pen in there hand and hammber fist it into the back of the attackers hand as hard as they can. Do this lightly to youself and see how it feels. When a human is struck the face and the hands follow the pain, if the strike is good enough the hand will come off and then the hands together and they will look at it. Much like what happens when you burn yourself on the stove. When he looks at his hand, hammber fist the SOB in the face and run as you blow your whistle which is something else you should NEVER leave the house without. 

I too enjoy the conversation.


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## kodeboswachter (Jan 19, 2007)

Please don't stop posting your experience, i very much like to read it here and on usn.

greetings

ko


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## sween1911 (Jan 19, 2007)

GEORGE! Nice to see you over here. Good info.


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## mercop (Jan 19, 2007)

Figured I would see some of the USN faithful over here.


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## DocArnie (Jan 19, 2007)

mercop said:


> run as you blow your whistle which is something else you should NEVER leave the house without.



Hi mercop!
Thanks for all your information!
About the whistle: What for exactly, just for scaring the perp (someone might look) or actually for calling help? Have you spoken to someone who did use a whistle in such a situation with success?


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## greenLED (Jan 19, 2007)

Good to see you sharing this stuff here, mercop.



mercop said:


> When you flash the light in his eyes, you don't stand there and see how long he is distracted by your super kewl custom night sun flash light, you either move in and dominate or haul ***.



Even a Mall Ninja like myself recognizes that, but that doesn't stop many from thinking (and strongly arguing) that having a light (stashed somewhere, I assume) is (somehow) going to increase your level of safety. 

I think too many vendors play the "blind your oponent" jingle and that can give people a false sense of security. Yes, lights have their place, but simply having a light (even if it has a bad-A impact bezel) and not knowing how to use it (by constant training and mental disposition) is almost like not having anything at all. Actually, I know from an acquaintance's experience that having a light can actually work against a person if they don't know how to deal with a tight situation.

Hopefully your posts will continue to enlighten (pun intended) and clarify some misconceptions.


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## blahblahblah (Jan 19, 2007)

mercop said:


> You can check out http://www.strategosinternational.com/ that is where Ken Good of Surefire fame is now. Some good stuff from them and Surefire. IMHO the only thing that makes anything tactical is that you use it to your advantage. Humans need light to see, so if you can control it to any extent you can change your enviroment and that is awesome.



Ken is also on CPF. Here's one of his more recent threads:
http://candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=149024&highlight=helios
FWIW, he provides GREAT service and support to his products.

The last sentence in the quote above also reminds me of an incident in my neighborhood a couple years ago... A police officer arrived at a domestic distubance call *after *the scene was under control (other officers there for 10 min or so and husband fled 15 min ago). Me, one neighbor, and a friend were doing the neighborly thing by taking care of a 3 year old child (son of parents fighting) in my front lawn. This "new" police officer came up to us trying to 'control' the scene which was totally calm and pretty much done. The officer was on her "power trip", barking at us to go home, and shined her Maglite at our eyes while we were trying to play with the child to distract him from this unfortunate situation. While still playing with the kid on on the ground, I shined my U2 in her face and told her I am at my home. Once she got a blast of light (probably seeing dots) she backed off a bit. :touche: Moral of the story... Don't be a dumb cop with a dim light to a flashaholic. :lolsign:


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## raythompson (Jan 19, 2007)

mercop said:


> Car stops- unlike what they are teaching in the academy I like to stop cars in the darkest areas I can so that I control all the light. I use my high beams; take down lights and spotlight to illuminate the suspect car.


I only pull over for police when I am in the brightest area that I can find. I have no idea if the clod with the flashing lights is a LEO or not and I am not about to risk my life for such an event. I just turn on the flashers, wave to the possible LEO, and keep driving until I get to a place with lights and other people.

I also will not give my license, registration, or any other information to an officer in an unmarked vehicle. I ask the officer to provide another officer in a marked vehicle. If they don't want to do that then I leave the scene as any officer would/should understand my concerns.

Reason I say this is that I was stopped on the local freeway by an unmarked with an officer in plain clothes. I asked for identification and he refused saying he would ask the questions. I then asked for another officer, in uniform, in a marked car. Again the supposed LEO refused. I simply started the car and drove off.

When I got to a phone (this was pre cell days) I called the local police and reported the incident. They said I was absolutely correct in what I did.

So I will not stop in an area with no lights for any car that pretends to be a LEO. It is not safe for me and any officer worth anything should understand the situation. There is a reason that stopping in well lighted areas is taught. To go against your training is, shall we say, not smart.


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## TENNlight (Jan 19, 2007)

*"The house was lit up like a chicken nugget under a hot lamp."*

:lolsign: Too funny!


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## papaglock (Jan 19, 2007)

Carbine15

Though now an "Ex" Officer, I too follow the judged by 12 ideology. Unfortunately, with the liberal courts, being judged by 12 is far more real than in the past. In some of the cases I have monitored, the jury judges by "feel" versus fact. Today, one has so many things to think about before action, that is a shame. Sometimes the only thing that keeps you alive in a few milliseconds!

Papa 




carbine15 said:


> I say better to be judged by twelve than carried by six.


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## mercop (Jan 20, 2007)

Everyone in my house carries a whistle. They are seldom heard in public these days and attract a lot of attention.


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## mcmc (Jan 20, 2007)

mercop, interesting information that all rings of truth and experience. please keep it coming.


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## mercop (Jan 20, 2007)

The kids are allowed to blow the whistles in the house once in a while (not enough to make me beat them) and know that the punishment for blowing them outside the house unless it is an an emergency would very severe. My son is 7 and sending him into a bathroom is dangerous. The whistle is a great alarm. He also plays about a block away with his best friend and the Acme Tornado Slim Line can be easily heard from my house. When we hear it we know it is our family unlike somebody yelling "mom" or "dad".

Criminals hate attention, and attention comes in two ways..light (think most of you have that covered) and noise.


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## DocArnie (Jan 20, 2007)

You're right, noone is using them in public and if someone does, every person will look.


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## vandrecken (Jan 20, 2007)

Excellent thread - thanks Mercop. The pragmatic stuff is really educational please keep it coming and the critique just serves to test it and highlight the strengths and the risks.

cheers


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## justmyluck (Jan 20, 2007)

Mercop, great post...I agree with everyone else and hope you keep posting tidbits as they come to mind or come up on your job. I for one will certainly keep an eye on this thread and/or others of yours.

I'm not a LEO, but have family and friends who are. As I get older and am looking to start a family, it becomes more and more evident how important it is to be knowledgable enough to protect "you and yours". Preparedness is everything.

Keep up the great work!

Eric


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## RemingtonBPD (Jan 23, 2007)

raythompson said:


> So I will not stop in an area with no lights for any car that pretends to be a LEO. It is not safe for me and any officer worth anything should understand the situation. There is a reason that stopping in well lighted areas is taught. To go against your training is, shall we say, not smart.


 
Being taught things, and how they pan out as you are on your shift are two different things. Stopping a vehicle in a dark area is not any more dangerous than stopping it in a lit area. If someone wanted to shoot at you they are going to do it no matter what the lighting. 

I can understand your concern that a car with lights may be a pretend LEO, but nothing ticks me off more than when someone does not stop when I put my lights on. If I put my lights on for someone to stop it is because I feel the area is safe for the stop. I have had several people who took it upon themselves to stop when they decided to, and it led to an unsafe situation for me and them....and ultimately led to me being less than happy with them.


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## RemingtonBPD (Jan 23, 2007)

harddrive said:


> The only other comment I will make is that discussing specific Police tatcics and procedures on a public forum like this may not be the best idea. While I'm not suggesting the CPF has a large criminal membership, the whole world has access to this site and I would hate to think information posted here might be used for a criminal to gain any sort of advantage against one of our colleges.
> 
> Just my 2 cents worth. Take it as you will.


 
There are more than enough shows, books, videos, etc that give away alot more than what Mercop did in his interesting post. I would not be overly concerned about what he is writing. It is too late to worry about them finding out about a majority of our tactics. The only counter to that is discipline, training, and counting on each other out there.


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## mercop (Jan 23, 2007)

The following post kind of got lost somewhere so here it is-



The majority of the time the tactical use of the handheld light is discussed the emphasis is on the ability of the light to blind the opponent. The ability of a light to blind someone really counts on three things, the power of the light, and the preexisting ambient light of the environment and most importantly the probability of the threat focusing on the light.
When it comes the brightness of the light, which seems to be the focal point of conversation, I believe that many times there is too much. Momma always said doesn’t look into the eyes of the sun. This is true since we instinctually seem to know that you should not look directly at bright lights whether it is the sun, on coming headlights or someone welding. When bright light is shined in someone’s eyes a natural defense mechanism is to shield the face with the hands and to attempt to look around the light. The darker the situation the more likely this is to occur.
As far as using a light to blind someone this become problematic in the environment that the majority of folks will find themselves in due to the amount of ambient light that already exists. Most easily explained by the fact that you don’t test the brightness of you new light during the day. Flashlight work best in the dark at least for illumination purposes. Illuminating the threat is only half the use of the light.
Getting the threat to focus on the light is the hard part, especially if you shine it right in their eyes. For CQB especially hand-to-hand the greatest benefit of the handheld light is to disorient and distract.
I have gotten several PHs from folks about only using he standard Surefire P60 lamp in my 6P. Basically the three times a policeman uses a light is for car stops, building searches and street contacts. During car stops overheads, takedowns, spotlights and high beams already illuminate the vehicle. What do you think you are going to add to that with a handheld light? Not much. At that point the handheld light is to look into nook and crannies where light does not fill or splash into. Clearing buildings is usually darkest environment we operate in, there for the weakest light can appear very bright proving the P60 most efficient? The last most common use being street contacts is where I want to make my major points. 
Most street contact or “walk ups” are going to occur in places that are pretty well lit for the most part. In and around streets, buildings, parking lots and businesses. This is the situation where there is the most propensity for violence for police and civilians alike. Here the most important parts about having handheld light is having it with you, being able to deploy it under stress and reliability. No matter how ultra high speed your particular EDC light is if any of these three things are not in order your are phucked.
Due to the ambient light encountered during street contacts, blinding your adversary is unlikely. What is likely is being about to disorient or distract him while you decide to take flight or fight.
When you are driving down the street and a small animal scurries across the road in front of you, what do you do? Your predator eyes detect movement and your eyes track it across the road. The same thing would occur if you took a ball and rolled it into a room full of people, they would detect movement and track it. We can use this to our survival advantage. Also understand the human eye can only track on thing at a time. This is where the use of a handheld light is often misunderstood and underused.
Next time you train in a nice bright area take the handheld light of your choice. Have your training partner stand in front of you and whenever you are ready from a normal conversation distance with your hands in front of you, strobe the light on and track it up at a 45 degree angle. As your partners eyes latch onto the light and begin to instinctually track it just give him a light slap on the face with your opposite hand. Don’t do it hard or he won’t let you do it again. The point of the drill is to show that even in the brightest areas the human eye is predisposed to follow movement and when you add a nice shiny light it only adds to the effect. Again this is only one drill but effectively shows the importance of using he light to mentally and physically off balance their opponent and at the same time move the light off their center line.
This technique can be especially effective for policemen since 90% of the population is right handed, thus the right handed criminal is predisposed as a right handed policeman is to respond to a rear threat or run away by turning to his left first. A right handed policeman will most likely have his light in his left hand allowing him to strobe the light to the bad guys left, there buy off balancing him buy taking him the in the opposite direction of his normal reaction.
The best way to survive is to keep moving. The best way to use a flashlight to help you to survive is to move the light, not count on it to blind but rather distract and disorient.


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## The Voice of Reason (Jan 23, 2007)

Interesting thread - great to see the debate and different points of view.

Keep it coming, please, Mercop...


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## faucon (Jan 23, 2007)

vandrecken said:


> Excellent thread - thanks Mercop. The pragmatic stuff is really educational please keep it coming and the critique just serves to test it and highlight the strengths and the risks.
> 
> cheers


Thanks mercop for your very informative posts. Not being an LEO myself I really appreciate learning some practical ideas for how to use my Surefires for self-protection. While I think we should all feel free to speak our minds, I'm surprised at some of the criticism unless it is coming from equally experienced LEOs who just happen to have a different take on these issues.


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## Pax et Lux (Jan 23, 2007)

mercop said:


> Many may cringe when I say this but I am not a fan of impact bezels. . . For every one time you will use them on a bad guy they will poke, prod and f-up your clothes and skin 1000 times until you stop carrying it. They will also attract a huge ammount of attention from TSA types.
> 
> The other point is that there is a real good chance if someone is attacking you they have the Ninja (HIV and HEP cocktail) affectionately called so by us since it creeps up on you. .


 
I often wondered just who was buying all these impact bezels. If you want to carry a knife, do so - just don't try and make it part of your flashlight. To me, nothing says armchair general more than putting those little metal teeth on your lights. . .

I enjoyed this post - for me, because the people raising questions were by and large LEOs.


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## DasRonin (Jan 23, 2007)

Well, In my case... (retired U.S. Marshal, Senior Firearms/Tactical Instructor, graduate of the Surefire Instructor Developement Course, etc, etc...)

If I have/had my SF M3-CB in my left hand, and my pistol in my right hand, and I needed a striking weapon (something less lethal). I can do a bezel strike and if needed, holster the pistol and move forward defensively at a lower level of the use of force continium (since the firearm has been holstered).

I can defend as a LEO cuts and abrasions from an impact weapon much much better than those of an edged weapon. PLUS, the flashlight is already in my hand. There is a valid use for a crenellated Strike Bezel. ...and yes, there might be blood. To have a violent confrontation and to expect there will not be blood is unrealistic or very naive. There is going to be blood, and personally, I prefer it NOT be my blood! It is fighting, not dancing. Someone is going to get hurt.

As to edged weapons. Not getting into use by an LEO. In a knife fight there are two losers. One to the morgue and the other to the emergency room. No matter how well you do, you have an enormous chance of being cut up even if you win. I prefer to take a firearm to knife fights.

On my work rifles (AR-15) I have some very nasty looking flash supressors that look very much like a crenellated Strike Bezel. Though somewhat controversial, there are some with a school of thought to muzzle strikes to the sternum. The controversy is that bullets come out of that same muzzle used to strike, and an unintentional discharge of the rifle could occur if the operator was not careful with his/her trigger finger. That would go over rather poorly!

Just a few thoughts from my 30+ years of training and experience (including being trained and a trainer)... YMMV.


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## mercop (Jan 23, 2007)

I do a fair ammout of work with www.troyind.com and my personal rifle has a mid evil muzzle brake which is intended for striking. I am also a master instructor under Paul Castle for Center Axis Relock and we advocate the "pistol punch" in certain circumstances.

My main interest in interpersonal combat within seven yards with open hand, stick, knife and pistol. All other things being equaled the blade rules within arms reach. 

Thanks for the comments and conversation.


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## harddrive (Jan 24, 2007)

RemingtonBPD said:


> There are more than enough shows, books, videos, etc that give away alot more than what Mercop did in his interesting post. I would not be overly concerned about what he is writing. It is too late to worry about them finding out about a majority of our tactics. The only counter to that is discipline, training, and counting on each other out there.


 
Fair point. 

I agree this has turned into an interesting thread.


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## Monocrom (Jan 24, 2007)

mercop said:


> Thanks for the comments and conversation.


 
Hey, I remember you. Glad to see you here. You should post more. CPF is one of the more courtious forums on the web.


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## FirstMain (Jan 24, 2007)

Wise words Mercop...

I'll side with your comments about using any tactical advantage to de-escalate or stop a situation. As a civilian who is licensed to carry concealed firearms, I fully realize the effect on me, my loved ones and others, should I ever have to fully stop an armed assault. For that reason, I also carry FireFox and sometimes a stunner as well. If a drunk decides to punch me out, and is unarmed, I'm certainly not going to shoot him, but he will get a real good dose from the zapper and then a little squirt in the eyes so I can make a clean getaway. No heroics, just avoiding escalation and further trouble.

The rules I have learned is that you should use alertness, avoidance, and good sense. Many people, through lack of situational awareness, allow themselves to be victims. By being aware of your surroundings, and being careful where you go, you can avoid just about 95% of potential problems.

Should I be in an unarmed situation (doubtful for me but not impossible), a pen in the face or the throat is better than nothing. If your own *** is on the line, don't hesitate to use whatever is available to stop the threat, and keep doing it until the threat is over. Then dust yourself off, call 911, and let the system take care of the rest. Any cop worth his badge isn't going to burn a good guy just because some slimeball jumped him. Do what it takes to stop the threat, but no more.

Mercop, keep the rubber on the road...

Ron


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## yalskey (Jan 24, 2007)

Mercop:

I live in Brooklyn Park.... north of Glen Burnie, south of Baltimore city.

Do you work for the Ho Co. PD? I've been through their Citizen Police Academy program. I have much respect for that PD.

Thanks for your insights and for your service to our community.


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## mercop (Jan 29, 2007)

I work in Harford County. Good to see someone local. BTW I am doing a seminar in Aberdeen MD. If you want to check it out just go to www.mercop.com I will be doing some light stuff.


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## UNM1136 (Jan 31, 2007)

Gotta agree with Mercop here. Dark places are the best places to conduct stops. By using my dome light to write my paper, I an a stationary position, yes, but if something starts to break and I am doing my cite by my trunk, I am staring at the violator's vehicle past my own strobe lights. This is difficult, and it is easier be under my strobes than behind. At the trunk of my unit I am also exposed to the elements, and exposed to other drivers that may or may not be a danger, those who are so buisy rubber necking that they crash, or those drunks that are attracted to the pretty lights. Also, in the passenger compartment, I have access to 3 flashlights, an AR, and my ammuntion. If the driver is a violent offender and wants to engage me I would rather have my lights and rifle within reach, instead of having to fight my way to it. If I am at the trunk of my car, and I am targeted by offenders on the driver and passenger side of my car I can fight from the rear of my car, or I can can come around from either side. If I am in the driver's seat, I can fight from the driver's seat, I can exit the driver's side, or I can exit the passenger side (how many have practiced diving out of the passenger side of their cars?):rock: I can also engage through a windshield, which is than ideal but has saved many cops. Either way, I am more heavily armed now, rather than fighting my way to my rifle with my handgun and then doing essentially the same thing. I have seen live fire results of and am a believer in the first click of safety, and would prefer that to being outside my unit. 

If a diver will not stop for my marked unit in a dark area, then I will follow them to where they will stop and respond appropriately. If it is just someone who won't stop in a dark area, fine, by the time they do stop I will have the whole shift (2-4 marked units) with me to cover my approach as I make contact, or depending on the circumstances, called back to my car, or depending on circumstances, felony stopped. 

A prosecutor with an agenda (or a good crusading private attorney) can make anything a liability. BUT many cops fear liability more than they do bad guys. I have read numerous posts by Jeff Chudwin, who points out that many of these liability fears are old wive's tales with no supporting case law. While Mercop's tactics seem different, the words he uses are accepted. The explanation he gives uses terms that are easily recognized, and thus he is that much farther ahead in defending his actions, rather than "it has worked for me for the last X years." More importantly, he does not violate any of the principles or concepts. I remember in the academy being told to stop them in a well ligted area IF you could, but that is not always possible. He discusses the wall of light, and making use of the lights he has to illuminate the car. IF a stop went south, resulting in a shaky shooting, AND he claimed that he could not clearly see his offender, there MIGHT be an issue of his stop location, not because of the facts, but because he has now publicly said that he prefers darkened locations. 

Remember, in this line of work CYA stands for Can You Articulate?

pat


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## AndyTiedye (Jan 31, 2007)

Hopefully the dark area he stopped in is no longer dark after he turns on his lights!
That is why he has come to CPF!


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## mercop (Feb 1, 2007)

I am no stranger to being investigated. That is what happens when you lock a lot of people up in violent areas. Not one has ever been sustained.


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## Oddjob (Feb 1, 2007)

Great Info! I love these statements of yours: The basics done well are what makes you advanced.

Training over tools.


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## zx7dave (Feb 1, 2007)

Mercop - I know a concern of mine is always bulb failure via hard knocks or exceeding the life expantacy of the bulb. I am surprised that with light being so critical for your job that you didn't choose a tougher light such as the C2 or M2 with maybe a LED dropin so it doesn't burn out. I definately understand about not running P61's as you mentioned earlier..I ended up financing 90% of my own batteries over the years even though it was for work purposes and it does get expensive. The only HOLA I run is the M6 which is pretty much such for show and awe, then it gets wiped down and put away like a old muscle car. I definately enjoyed reading your threads...keep 'em coming.


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## mercop (Feb 1, 2007)

My 6P on my duty belt is koppo wrapped to provide a lanyard with no noise signature. When taken out of the the holster in normal conditions the end of the lanyard is placed between my two middle fingers and wrapped around nice and snug to aid in retention during use.

If I am going to clear a building or something that may require some transitioning for opening doors etch I will slip my hand through the lanyard. The important thing is to have the lanyard tight enought so that when your hands are naturaly down at your side the light falls into your palm for fast index.

So me using a lanyard one of these way almost all the time cuts way down on popped bulbs.

If someone wants to post a tutorial of how to cord wrap I can send them the pics. I can post pics. Works great for light with no lanyard loop or as previously mentioned to eliminate noise signature.

As you may have noticed I have an opinion on everything and a reason for my opinion. I give a way, not the way.


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## mercop (Feb 13, 2007)

Partly because of the ammount of attention this thread provoked I have decided to put about 30-45 of using the light in my Modern Combatives System Seminars. We used to touch on it but will now expand. Even going to have a vendor their to pimp the most common Surefires.


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## mercop (Apr 10, 2007)

I added some stuff to my first post and made it an article on my site www.mercop.com.

Last weekend at the MCS seminar we also introduced a lot of new folks to the power of the moving light.


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## depusm12 (Apr 10, 2007)

mercop said:


> Teach at a DOD Police Academy.


 
I wasn't aware there was a DOD Police Academy? Where is it?


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## mercop (Apr 20, 2007)

They have one at Aberdeen Proving Ground.


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## mercop (Dec 27, 2007)

BTT


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## BigHonu (Dec 27, 2007)

mercop,

Thanks for the informative read!


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