Question about guns that bad guys carry
- Thread starter CMichael
- Start date
hardworker
New member
People take too much of a simplistic approach in looking at criminals. Look at it this way. A criminal is only a criminal after he commits a crime. Before that, he is the exact same as any of us. He could easily walk into a gun store and buy a pistol. I'd be willing to bet that a large number of guns used in crimes are legally bought and transferred. Pretending otherwise is just naive.
This is an interesting article about it.
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,320383,00.html
It lists the following as the top 10
1. Smith and Wesson .38 revolver
2. Ruger 9 mm semiautomatic
3. Lorcin Engineering .380 semiautomatic
4. Raven Arms .25 semiautomatic
5. Mossberg 12 gauge shotgun
6. Smith and Wesson 9mm semiautomatic
7. Smith and Wesson .357 revolver
8. Bryco Arms 9mm semiautomatic
9. Bryco Arms .380 semiautomatic
10. Davis Industries .380 semiautomatic
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,320383,00.html
It lists the following as the top 10
1. Smith and Wesson .38 revolver
2. Ruger 9 mm semiautomatic
3. Lorcin Engineering .380 semiautomatic
4. Raven Arms .25 semiautomatic
5. Mossberg 12 gauge shotgun
6. Smith and Wesson 9mm semiautomatic
7. Smith and Wesson .357 revolver
8. Bryco Arms 9mm semiautomatic
9. Bryco Arms .380 semiautomatic
10. Davis Industries .380 semiautomatic
TheNocturnus
New member
Well lets see, I have had a gun pointed at me each time in the 3 times I have been robbed. 1st was a silver gun, 2nd was a black gun, 3rd was a dual tone silver/black gun. Sorry I didn't catch the make, model, caliber or serial number. They were all semi-autos if that helps. I was more interested in where the barrel was pointing and how quickly I could get the thug to leave.
Watch Out for Car Break-Ins
I have noticed a rash of articles of late where cars in employee parking lots are increasingly being broken into with thieves loking for CCW guns knowing employees cannot bring the CCW device into the office work-place.
So it looks to me that the bad guys will carry/use whatever they can steal.
Something to think about for sure (though this has been a known issue for a long time).
-Cheers
I have noticed a rash of articles of late where cars in employee parking lots are increasingly being broken into with thieves loking for CCW guns knowing employees cannot bring the CCW device into the office work-place.
So it looks to me that the bad guys will carry/use whatever they can steal.
Something to think about for sure (though this has been a known issue for a long time).
-Cheers
Up here in the North East it's about 50/50. Many gangbangers carry a 25 auto. The other 50% it's usually whatever is stolen out of homes or brought up from the south and illegal sold. Glocks, Sigs, Kimber, S&W revolvers... They tend to have what everyone else has. They normally don't have a holster. The hardest thing for them to get is ammo. It's not unusual to confiscate guns that are not fully loaded.
I did a casual survey of the male students in the classes I teach in highschool and they all know what a Glock and AK47 are. Most of them wouldn't know the difference between a G17 and a G39 but if it is black and plastic, it is a Glock to them. They all want an "AK" for status purposes. I've actually seen mothers in Wal-Mart and Academy buying ammo for guns I know they don't have or shoot. That's how they solve the ammo problem. Most of them carry what ever they steal or trade dope for.
A classic example of this is I saw a kid I know in Academy one day and his mother was purchasing a semi .380 for him to take hog hunting. He actually told me this (straw sale for a minor -illegal!). I know the kid fairly well and he has legal issues which prevent him from buying anything in a gun store. The funny part came in when, after she bought the gun, the son asked the guy behind the counter if he had an .38spl. ammo to go in the gun. The guy replied "yes" and sold him a box. Knowing you can't return ammo to Academy, I wonder how he hoped to load the stuff in his newly acquired hog piece. Stuff like this happens more than we know.
A classic example of this is I saw a kid I know in Academy one day and his mother was purchasing a semi .380 for him to take hog hunting. He actually told me this (straw sale for a minor -illegal!). I know the kid fairly well and he has legal issues which prevent him from buying anything in a gun store. The funny part came in when, after she bought the gun, the son asked the guy behind the counter if he had an .38spl. ammo to go in the gun. The guy replied "yes" and sold him a box. Knowing you can't return ammo to Academy, I wonder how he hoped to load the stuff in his newly acquired hog piece. Stuff like this happens more than we know.
Burners & throwing bullets, AK-45s....
Many street crooks & big city bangers use cheap pistols or high quality semi auto models like Glocks or Berettas so they can field strip them, then hide the parts all around da hood.
I saw that method used on HBO's popular TV crime drama The Wire.
Many armed citizens & even sworn LE officers have had loaded firearms, magazines & ammunition stolen from motor vehicles.
A few were even "follow home" crimes from gun shops/indoor ranges!
The posts about AKs reminds me of the recent news item about Casey Anthony's high profile release from the Orange County Florida Corrections Complex. The SRT officers were packing HK UMP .45acp select fire SMGs.
An embedded, intrepid media reporter from the Orlando Sentinel called it a "AK-45".
Other newsies used terms like AK rifles & assault rifles.
FWIW; the sworn sheriff's deputies and jail officers issue the Glock 21 .45acp sidearm and many tactical/spec ops deputies use the UMP .45acp or Bushmaster M4 5.56mm.
www.OCSO.com www.Bestjail.com
Many street crooks & big city bangers use cheap pistols or high quality semi auto models like Glocks or Berettas so they can field strip them, then hide the parts all around da hood.
I saw that method used on HBO's popular TV crime drama The Wire.
Many armed citizens & even sworn LE officers have had loaded firearms, magazines & ammunition stolen from motor vehicles.
A few were even "follow home" crimes from gun shops/indoor ranges!
The posts about AKs reminds me of the recent news item about Casey Anthony's high profile release from the Orange County Florida Corrections Complex. The SRT officers were packing HK UMP .45acp select fire SMGs.
An embedded, intrepid media reporter from the Orlando Sentinel called it a "AK-45".
Other newsies used terms like AK rifles & assault rifles.
FWIW; the sworn sheriff's deputies and jail officers issue the Glock 21 .45acp sidearm and many tactical/spec ops deputies use the UMP .45acp or Bushmaster M4 5.56mm.
www.OCSO.com www.Bestjail.com
I've been a crime reporter at newspapers around the country four about five years and I've talked to a lot of cops - local, ATF, FBI.
And I usually take note of caliber, make and model whenever I can.
In my experience, cops usually confiscate low-dollar handguns from drug dealers and street criminals. A lot of .38 revolvers. A lot of cheap .380s.
Most guns that your average street felon uses were bought through straw purchases (a family member or a girlfriend buys the gun legally at the LGS and gives it to the felon). These guys don't have a lot of money (hence, why they're slinging drugs and sticking up other users and dealers) so they go for cheap stuff. They also don't know much about guns, usually, so it's whatever looks shiny.
For most of these guys, a gun is expendable. They have to be willing to toss it at a moment's notice, so they're not likely to drop $750 on a Sig because of its superior handling, reliability and accuracy.
The thing is, those aren't the guys you're likely to encounter in any kind of self-defense situation. They stay in their neighborhoods and do their dirty work in their neighborhoods.
The more likely (and dangerous) felons are the serial robbers - the guys who hit gas stations, liquor stores and tobacco shops. Some of their guns come from straw purchases, but they're also likely to come from burglaries.
Most burglars are looking for three things when they break into a house: Electronics, jewelry and guns. All the better reason to keep your weapons secured in some fashion when you're not home.
Therefore, the robbers are carrying whatever they can get their hands on. They'll have cheap stuff, or sometimes more high-dollar guns. They also have long guns.
I covered a stick-up crew that was armed with a shotgun and a a couple semiautomatics.
One robber who hit several convenience stores had a long barrel .44 Magnum Taurus Raging Bull that was stolen from a home a few weeks before the robberies started.
Then there are the domestics - a guy who shoots in wife or family. Because they're using guns that are legally purchased during better times, usually, they're shooting the same kinds of weapons you and I are.
I'm in the middle of a trial for a guy who killed eight people in a nursing home. He was an avid hunter, shooter and re-loader before. He killed everyone with a pump 12-gauge shotgun (Winchester, I think). But he also had a Taurus .357 magnum snub nose and a Taurus .22 auto.
So I think the answer here is: It depends.
And I usually take note of caliber, make and model whenever I can.
In my experience, cops usually confiscate low-dollar handguns from drug dealers and street criminals. A lot of .38 revolvers. A lot of cheap .380s.
Most guns that your average street felon uses were bought through straw purchases (a family member or a girlfriend buys the gun legally at the LGS and gives it to the felon). These guys don't have a lot of money (hence, why they're slinging drugs and sticking up other users and dealers) so they go for cheap stuff. They also don't know much about guns, usually, so it's whatever looks shiny.
For most of these guys, a gun is expendable. They have to be willing to toss it at a moment's notice, so they're not likely to drop $750 on a Sig because of its superior handling, reliability and accuracy.
The thing is, those aren't the guys you're likely to encounter in any kind of self-defense situation. They stay in their neighborhoods and do their dirty work in their neighborhoods.
The more likely (and dangerous) felons are the serial robbers - the guys who hit gas stations, liquor stores and tobacco shops. Some of their guns come from straw purchases, but they're also likely to come from burglaries.
Most burglars are looking for three things when they break into a house: Electronics, jewelry and guns. All the better reason to keep your weapons secured in some fashion when you're not home.
Therefore, the robbers are carrying whatever they can get their hands on. They'll have cheap stuff, or sometimes more high-dollar guns. They also have long guns.
I covered a stick-up crew that was armed with a shotgun and a a couple semiautomatics.
One robber who hit several convenience stores had a long barrel .44 Magnum Taurus Raging Bull that was stolen from a home a few weeks before the robberies started.
Then there are the domestics - a guy who shoots in wife or family. Because they're using guns that are legally purchased during better times, usually, they're shooting the same kinds of weapons you and I are.
I'm in the middle of a trial for a guy who killed eight people in a nursing home. He was an avid hunter, shooter and re-loader before. He killed everyone with a pump 12-gauge shotgun (Winchester, I think). But he also had a Taurus .357 magnum snub nose and a Taurus .22 auto.
So I think the answer here is: It depends.
Its my unscientific observation that the majority of criminals of today don't just start off straight in to big-time felonies. Many hardened criminals have a prior record of petty crime starting way back. It is my guess that many, if not most, already have a criminal record that likely would preclude them from legally purchasing a firearm.
This is actually the simplistic and naive way of looking at this topic. Criminals think different than other people. Read anything by Stanton Samenow, but especially his works on criminal thinking errors.
I am a retired parole officer and dealt with the criminal element for a long time. I can count on one hand the parolees who were "the exact same as any of us"
Crips & Bloods....
The popular but somewhat dated myth about the power or size of the LA based Crips or Bloods street gangs are alas, somewhat dated.
The more violent & powerful MS-13 and Mexican drug cartels have driven out or ground out most of the "Bloods" and/or "Crips".
The hyper violent street gangs from Latin & South America now control most of the illegal activities of the large US street gangs like the Latin Kings, Crips, Bloods etc. MS-13 & the networks are better organized and "wired in" too.
Clyde
The popular but somewhat dated myth about the power or size of the LA based Crips or Bloods street gangs are alas, somewhat dated.
The more violent & powerful MS-13 and Mexican drug cartels have driven out or ground out most of the "Bloods" and/or "Crips".
The hyper violent street gangs from Latin & South America now control most of the illegal activities of the large US street gangs like the Latin Kings, Crips, Bloods etc. MS-13 & the networks are better organized and "wired in" too.
Clyde