Matt W. was a Deputy Sheriff in Polk County, Florida. His colleagues said he had a great sense of humor.
One day, Matt assisted another deputy on a traffic stop where a man had been pulled over and ran away into a wooded area.
Matt responded to the scene with his K9 partner to track the suspect.
The K9 picked up the suspect’s scent from the abandoned car and Matt headed towards the woods.
Soon, the K9 found the suspect’s cell phone on the ground.
That’s when Matt yelled for the suspect to come out before he released the dog.
Then, gunfire erupted.
Matt was ambushed by the suspect and shot nine times including two execution-style wounds to the head.
The other officer on scene returned fire but the suspect got away… at least for a time.
The shooter ran to a nearby home, but other arriving deputies saw him.
So, the shooter ran back into the woods.
Police set up a containment area around the woods and over 100 officers responded to the area including SWAT teams.
Three helicopters covered the area but couldn’t find the shooter.
With night setting in, police decided to wait until the morning and then enter the woods shoulder to shoulder until they located the suspect.
Shortly after 9:30 a.m., police found the shooter hiding in the woods.
Deputies yelled at him to show his hands.
Officers estimated that they told the suspect for over 15 seconds to show his hands.
Then officers saw the suspect make a jerking motion with his hand that was holding his gun.
That’s when the officers fired at the suspect.
The suspect was shot a total of 68 times: 11 times in the torso, 56 times in his arms and legs, and one time in the head.
“That’s all the bullets we had, or we would have shot him more,” Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd told the media.
“We knew that he would shoot and kill anybody that he needed to get away. We weren’t going to allow that to happen,” added the sheriff.
The sheriff faced criticism for his comments about the number of times officers shot the suspect.
A reporter asked why the suspect was shot so many times. The sheriff said, “I would tell them I guess we ran out of ammunition.”
“I meant it then, and I mean it right now,” he said. “I have no misgivings about it.”
Police did what they had to do to ensure the threat no longer existed.
The suspect had already executed a deputy, and he would have had no problem killing more if he had the chance.
Now, I don’t know the exact weapons the police officers carried that day, but I would guess that at least a few of them were armed with AR-15 rifles.
In a standoff like that, one thing you absolutely cannot have happen is for your gun to malfunction.
That’s why some shooters like to try to prevent ammunition feeding issues by not loading their magazines to max capacity.
For example, if the AR-15 has a 30-round mag they might load it with 28 rounds.
Considering this, here are a few of the benefits and drawbacks of loading your magazine a few rounds shy of full.
Benefits of loading a few rounds short:
One of the main reasons that shooters load their magazines short is that it reduces the amount of stress on the magazine.
It can help reduce the compression on the magazine spring and prevent wear and fatigue on the spring.
And certain magazines will feed better if the mag isn’t completely loaded.
For example, high-capacity mags such as a 30-round AR-15 mag will usually feed better if the mag isn’t at capacity – especially if it’s a new mag that isn’t broken in.
If you have an older firearm or a gun that isn’t the best quality, it can be beneficial to load mags to less than capacity to prevent feeding issues.
Lastly, when a magazine is loaded to capacity it has the potential to put tension on the firearm mechanisms such as the magazine well or follower.
Fewer rounds in the mag can reduce this tension.
Drawbacks to loading a mag short:
The main drawback to loading a magazine a few rounds short is that you will obviously have fewer rounds to stop a threat.
During a self-defense situation, you may need all the rounds you have in your gun.
Every round counts when your life is on the line, so having two rounds less could be a big deal.
Another issue is that you need to track your ammo.
For instance, always load two rounds short so that you will adjust your mindset to know you have two fewer rounds than the capacity.
The last thing you want is to be in a gunfight and think you have more bullets than you do.
So, if your gun only works well when the magazine is loaded to a reduced capacity it could be a sign of another issue.
Even though the gun operates it could be masking an issue with the mag well or some other part.
I load my magazines a few rounds short for my AR-15 mags to help prevent feeding issues.
But it’s clearly up to you.
