All firearm positions and movements studied were discerned from 30 years of
investigation of officer-involved shootings by the lead investigator. Each position and movement
had been performed by police officers in dynamic, rapidly unfolding life and death shooting
situations.
A note must be added here to further clarify the results from some of the test positions so
as to better interpret them. Some of the officers involved in this study were unable to correctly
perform some of the test conditions (tests 7, 8, & 9) as asked by the researchers. The test
conditions called for the shooters tofire while they were in motion not after they had completed
the motion. The shooters who did not perform the test conditions correctly did not spin and
shoot, instead they spun, stopped, and then shot. Preliminary testing indicates a dramatic change
in spent cartridge casing placement when the firearm is fired while being moved rapidly.
Therefore, the authors believe the data presented in these tests (7-9) significantly understates the
distance and variability ofthe ejection pattern.