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July 2009
By Donnamaie and H. Lee Stewart.
Stewart is a private consultant within the technology sector specializing in programming and network security. She is a prolific reader and infrequent scrivener of tales of horror, a product of a childhood spent along Germany's fabled Fairy Tale Road. She stems from a family with a long tradition of law enforcement.
I had a few questions about CHPs and cops in general – Research for my CHiPs Out Of Uniform Series (I need to have at least three of these things ready to go before launch – so here comes Snowbound (first-page read done for the group – the explosion), Roll-over, Road Rage, and Shoot-out.). So, I asked someone in the Fabio fan club for information when they offered. (Yes, he’s been in a photo shoot in Khaki – with a weapon – very, very rare, however.) She’s from a heavily-law enforcement family and has a bigger gun than I have-------in fact, I’d love to meet her brothers! (I am thinking --- cover model????)
Q: Are there underwear requirements? Like, when my heroine undresses her man, just what does she have to take off him? I am guessing white. Tighty-whitey actually.
Yes, there is regulation underwear. Of a sort. I quote... "White."
Meaning white tees/tanks and briefs for men. White briefs and plain support bras or tanks for the women. *chuckle* Interestingly enough.
California Corrections Officers and the CHP have the exact same uniform. The patches and such are different, but they use the same uniform. They order from the same vendor. I think it's a cost saving thing for the state.
Q. SWAT boots standard? (Zipper side - tie on top)
The CHP exclusively uses Dehner patrol boots.
Q: How long would it take to undress him – if you were in a hurry?
They can be dressed from the skin out in under 3
minutes, slightly longer for dress uniform. And for the undressing... 23
seconds flat from fully dressed to the birthday suit. That time includes securing side-arms. You know... Provided they're motivated to undress.
Q. What are the rules about "securing" the sidearm/backup - does it have to be nearby (like near the bed when sleeping)? If there are no kids in the house, are the rules different? Does it have to be close by at all times? In the Jesse Stone Series, the gun is on the bar near the booze----- which saved his life on one occasion.
Different police agencies have different policies. The LAPD and CHP have identical policies as to when off-duty an officer may carry his service weapon. It must be within his possession at all times. The actual method of securing it is left up to the individual officers. Kids, no kids, etc... The policy is the same. Some keep a gun safe to store their service weapon. Some simply toss it on the table.
It is important to note that some officers are more at risk than others. They might live in dangerous neighborhoods or work in gang units where retaliation is a strong possibility. For them, it makes sense to keep their weapon in easy reach, unholstered, loaded, a round in the chamber, and the safety off. Safety is their primary goal, no matter what risk their particular assignment might be to their personal life.
The vast majority of cops take it as deadly serious since they are criminally liable if someone else shoots another with their service weapon.
Q. If they are "on alert" would they NOT have the safety on?
I've yet to meet an on-duty copy that did have the safety engaged on their service weapon. Off-duty is a different story. It varies from agency to agency, but in the case of CHP officers, it's a preference thing.
Q. Do they normally keep a shell in the chamber ready to go?
Yes, they do. I've never met a cop that didn't.
Q. Have you heard that the Glock jams so they never fully load the mag (and that is the fix)? (FBI woman told us that.)
Glocks are notorious for jamming. The "fix" varies from model to model. The long and short of it is that the spent casing doesn't fully eject from some models. The slide mechanism on some models stays back until you release the trigger. Those, you fire with a rapid release of the trigger.
On other models, lower heat rounds will break off. On those, using a higher heat round fixes the problem.
When it jams, it can usually be cleared simply by smacking the gun just below the slide and manually ejecting the spent casing. If the round is live, whacking it at the base of the magazine will usually fix it. Other times, nothing will fix it except a pair of needle-nose pliers and a hard tug.
Only partially loading the mag works for some models and prevents a jam from occurring at all. Doesn't make a difference in the vast majority of models used as service weapons on local and state levels, though. The NYPD actually pulled one of the models from service use because it had so many problems. Glock ended up recalling it.
Q: I’ve been told by someone at work who just married a cop (OK, Law Enforcement Personnel), that he doesn’t come home in uniform or driving a cruiser.
They prefer not to advertise where they live.
None of them like going anywhere in uniform.
Q: Caught in the act, as it were, the bad guys catch him in the middle of --- so I have him roll off the bed, grab up the gun in its holster and fire. (Thereby rescuing the heroine who had rescued him earlier.) (This new ending is a result of the Grid writing class – makes the story balanced.) My question, can you shoot out the bottom of a holster? I heard that with certain holsters this isn't possible. I will assume his allows it ----- and that he is shooting a Glock 45 (I prefer the Baby Eagle 9).
And yes, they can indeed shoot through the holster. Provided they haven't put the safety on when they've secured their firearm.
A .38 slug will rip through the bottom of any holster out there. Bullet trajectory might be off, but it can be done.
If they're packing something with a bit more force than a .38, it doesn't even affect the trajectory.
I learned that little gem during the mandatory certification class to get my permit to carry concealed.
I need to get that certificate!!!!
A friend of mine is a liaison between the NSA and CIA for a joint intelligence task force. He tells a great story about wrapping his holstered weapon in a pillow to make a makeshift silencer on a mission he was on several years back.
CSI and NCIS have both made use of that little gem.
Q: I want my “slightly aggressive” heroine to handcuff the hero to the bed and have her wicked way with him. My son being into S&M, (think leather Pride) (Leather and restraints, he’s a DOM), I understand they have a good time with this form of play. They tell me so anyway. But I understand that cops in general don’t like being restrained.
I don't think I've ever met a man that did enjoy being handcuffed. I've met a few that were curious and excited by the prospect in theory. That's not the same thing as enjoying it, though. It's hard to show machismo while completely helpless. Too hard on the male ego, I think. Pfft.
(The idea of making a man helpless and making him beg – now that appeals to me! It’s that latent Dominatrix showing up-----!)
One thing... Regarding CSI and NCIS... If you watch closely, they got it wrong. Wrapping a pillow around a gun only works as an effective silencer if the weapon is actually holstered. Firing through the holster slows the velocity of the bullet, which is key in muffling the bang. Both shows, and a few others I can think of, depicted the gun as being unholstered.
Q. If in a gun battle of any size, do they afterward have to turn in clothing and weapons?
If a cop is involved in a shooting of any type, on-duty or off-duty, it's handled by the internal affairs division. The officer is relieved of his weapon and his clothing is collected as evidence. There is no turning it in. They don't have a choice.
The weapon isn't returned until the investigation is closed and they are cleared of any wrong doing. They are usually placed on administrative leave while the investigation is ongoing. Clothing usually is not returned. Belts, shoes, and such can stand up to forensic testing, but cloth is usually unwearable afterward.
It's not just the pants and shirt that is collected. It's underwear as well. They usually are supervised while they undress.
Yes, some of them do carry a change of clothes in the cruiser. Some don't.
I remember reading a news article a few years back about a cop that shot an intruder in his home. He was reprimanded for taking the time to dress before calling it in. Danged if I can remember what state it was, though.
(Muffled laughing) (Sorry, but I have this visual imagery in my head----- too funny!)
Q. If a civilian is in a gun battle (like rescuing a cop), does she have to turn in clothing and weapon?
The weapon is always seized for forensic testing during the investigation. Clothing may be collected and tested for GSR (gun shot residue) or blood splatter patterns. In some cases, it's not. It depends on whether it's relevant to the investigation and the police agency's investigative or forensic policies.
Note: CHiPs was the name of a TV show – CHP is the official name of the California Highway Patrol – so I split hairs and called my series CHiPs out of Uniform – I suppose I’d better ask someone about that! CHiPs may be trademarked. It just sounds so much better than Cops out of Uniform. And all the stories center on the highway patrol.
(HEY! I have to do SOMETHING when driving 484 miles to my house in San Diego!) And Highway Patrol was the name of an old TV series too. B&W and very corny when looked at today.
Already know that any cover art CANNOT show actual insignia. So I may stick to the silhouette of a gun. Mine
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