SUBJECT: Louis Awerbuck's article on "Twenty-one Feet Is Not Enough" - SWAT Magazine

 

Let me begin by commending Louis Awerbuck for his outstanding article regarding officer safety awareness and the fact that the "Twenty-one Foot Rule" is just not adequate enough.  Before I go any further I also wish to say that I have the deepest respect for Dennis Tueller to who this rule is usually attributed.  I have personally met this man and attended a shooting school with him at the Action Target facility near Provo , Utah , and admire his enthusiasm and dedication.  Additionally, and to his credit, he at least got people to start thinking about the impact that distance has on action vs. reaction times.  In truth, few people really comprehend or understand how distance can compress reactionary time at close quarters.  It is deadly!  The simple formula of: SD=SRT & SWT should be learned by all, that is "Shorter Distances equal Shorter Reaction Time and Shorter Work Time" in order to get something done.

 

At the Dallas Police Department we conducted our own test concerning how distance directly correlates to the compression of reactionary time.  The conclusion was that our best minimal distance was not twenty-one feet but thirty-one feet...an additional ten feet!  There is one other thing that I wish to address.  Louis should have also emphasized the following more vigorously because in his Stage One and Stage Two scenarios, he ends by saying, and I quote, "Shooter wins!"  Not necessarily!  You win if you hit well!  You win with proper shot placement!  You win by driving rounds downrange until the threat is neutralized!  The reason this is so important to emphasize is because I have personally talked to a number of officers involved in deadly force scenarios at CQB distances where the bad guy was closing the distance extremely fast.  As they drew their weapon and began to fire, the shots were hitting legs, arms, and non-vital areas around the torso.  Shooting like that doesn't necessarily make you a winner.  Still, this was a great article to get out to officers to increase their overall safety awareness.  Thank you SWAT Magazine!