From our friends at SIG-Sauer:

https://www.sigsauer.com/trooper-of-the-year-corporal-joshua-moer/

This is the sort of thing the late Col. Jeff Cooper called “a feat of arms.” 

Hostage female being stabbed, her would-be murderer in close proximity. 

The Texas state trooper firing effective rescue shots with his pistol.

From as much as forty yards away.

While moving.

With 100% hits.

Texas recently went from their .357 SIG P226 service pistols to the polymer framed P320 from the same company, chambered for 9mm. Troopers in the Lone Star State tell me their issue handgun load is the 135 grain +P Hornady Critical Duty.

Some have already raised their eyebrows at the need for eleven shots to put this particular mad dog down. “See? We told you 9mm wasn’t fit for shooting anything bigger than a poodle!”  Without seeing the autopsy and determining where the bad guy was hit – I’d like to see his toxicology screen, too! – I’ll reserve comment on that argument.

But what I WILL say without reservation is – “Well done, Trooper!  Fine job, and fine shooting under pressure.”

Another case of Good Guy With A Gun saving an innocent life.

17 COMMENTS

  1. Well according to Hornady…

    “Designed to meet the needs of those who demand superior barrier penetration and prefer a full-size handgun for their personal protection. Critical Duty® is loaded with the tough Hornady® FlexLock® bullet that delivers “barrier blind” performance when shot through common urban barriers.”

    That might give us a hint. It is real hard to have excellent expansion yet shoot through barriers… and it is not designed for compact and sub-compact size pistols (hence shorter barrels.)

  2. @ Mas – “Texas recently went from their .357 SIG P226 service pistols to the polymer framed P320 from the same company, chambered for 9mm. Troopers in the Lone Star State tell me their issue handgun load is the 135 grain +P Hornady Critical Duty.

    Some have already raised their eyebrows at the need for eleven shots to put this particular mad dog down. “See? We told you 9mm wasn’t fit for shooting anything bigger than a poodle!” Without seeing the autopsy and determining where the bad guy was hit – I’d like to see his toxicology screen, too! – I’ll reserve comment on that argument.”

    Just a couple of observations. It is certainly a step-down to go from the .357 SIG round to 9mm Luger. You are talking about dropping velocities from the 1350-1400 fps range to about the 1100-1200 fps range and dropping muzzle energy from the 500 ft-lb range down to about 370 ft-lbs even with 9mm +P loads. To compensate for this drop in power, the user gains significant advantages in terms of recoil, muzzle blast and ammo cost.

    Nevertheless, as you know, shot placement is king and the 9mm load can certainly do the job given good shot placement. It is quite likely that, given the range of this engagement, shot placement was only fair to mediocre. At this range, the Trooper was doing EXCELLENT work to get 100% hits. Perfect placement would depend as much upon luck as skill.

    As for the toxicology screen, even if it does not show any drugs or narcotics, the stress of the high-speed pursuit would have been more than enough to pump up this criminal’s adrenaline levels to the point where multiple hits, from a handgun, would likely be needed.

    Overall, I agree with your views. This Trooper did a fantastic job in stopping this criminal in time to save the life of his victim. Well done, indeed!

    • This goes to show the level of training that the Texas Department of Public Safety instills in it Troops. Texas has the best trained and equipped State Police Agency in the country. Also you can’t go wrong with any Sig Sauer Firearms. Plus Hornedy Ammunition is the best also.

  3. I’m wondering why Texas didn’t switch to the P320 chambered in .357 SIG. That was one of the positive things about the P320. Can be purchased or switched easily to various pistol calibers

  4. My only experience with the Hornady 135 +p flex tip was shooting a ground hog destroying a foundation. One shot a bit low of center mass resulted in a 3 foot crawl and a quick demise. That was comparable to 12 guage 00 buckshot at the same distance of about 20 yards. Those little critters are tough.

  5. I had “heard” that some Texas DPS Troopers preferred the .357 Sig because…

    “When you had to fire a 9mm, bystanders would stick their heads up and look around saying “What’s going on?”. If you fired a .357 Sig, the subsequent concussive muzzle blast made everyone go straight to the ground immediately.”

    Anyway, that’s what I had heard. 🙂

  6. “Don’t Mess With Texas” – this popular phrase here in Texas certainly comes to mind. Proud to have been born here. And proud to have met a few troopers.
    I have always wanted to love the 9mm, but can’t seem to get there. My pair of 1911s, government and defender, with Federal HST+P give me a lot of comfort.
    Would appreciate a follow up by you, Mas, on the coroner report and other pertinent info.

  7. Great story. Great trooper. Maybe smaller statured, or recoil sensitive troopers could fire 9mm, while those who prefer .357 Sig could stay with it. How often do police officers really need to share ammunition with each other anyway?

    Government likes one-size-fits-all in a diverse world. Well, I understand that that is more economical, at least, but it is nice to have choices.

  8. Unfortunately Mas haters are going to hate. Hats off to the Trooper for making shots at distance and stopping the threat.

  9. Malcolm Robertson,

    Actually there is a “.” in .357 Sig. Maybe it has been dropped by advertisers, in the way “light” is spelled “lite” in ads.

    As you know, .357 Sig is a caliber. Caliber is calculated in either millimeters, or inches. This is given in inches, so the “.” is necessary. 357 inches may be the caliber of an intercontinental ballistic missile. .357 inches (357 thousandths of an inch) is the caliber of some handguns.

    • SAAMI and the CIP both leave off the “.” as does every bit mention of it on Sig’s website. The 357 was used to advertise it’s intended purpose of replicating the .357. It’s actually a 9mm or .355.

      The reason I’m aware of this because I used to be part of a forum where Dean Speir would metaphorically rap anyone on the knuckles with a ruler who used the “.” when referring to the round.

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