and 6 a.m. I think it’s a pretty fair as- sumption that events involving armed citizens are also more likely to occur during the hours of darkness. Humans
are diurnal creatures
and darkness handicaps our perfor- mance in a very big way. Unless you are in very familiar surroundings, even simple navigation becomes challenging. Should a threat come up on the radar screen, you must fi rst locate it. Next, you must make an instantaneous assessment as to whether this person (or persons) rep- resents a threat and if so, take action. That may take the form of evasion; however, you may fi nd yourself in a situation where force is the only rea- sonable alternative. Throughout our daily routine,
roughly 80 percent of the informa- tion our brain processes is through the sensory input of the eyes. When assessing
a potentially dangerous
threat, nearly 100 percent of the in- formation needed to arrive at the correct decision will be visual. When light falls to levels where threat as- sessment becomes diffi cult, we need to rely on a light source. In short, light helps us make in-
formed decisions.
Light Advantages Oddly enough, there are still some
individuals who question the wisdom of using a light to manage low-light threats. The collective experience, however, tells a very different story. Lights have been used to spot threats sooner, prevent mistaken identity shootings, and control aggressive be- havior, thus averting the need to use deadly force. In a study published in the FBI Law
Enforcement Bulletin, Dr. Paul Mi- chel was able to illustrate that in low- light levels, it is impossible to discrim- inate between ordinary household objects and weapons. Twelve police recruits were asked to identify objects held by an assistant in a darkened room. On cue, the assistant stepped out from behind a curtain holding one of four objects, one of which was a large-frame 9mm pistol. Much like real life, exposure time was very brief and the recruits had precious little time to make their determination. In the lowest-light levels, it was
virtually impossible to identify the objects. Predictably, as light levels increased, so did the success rate in correctly identifying the objects. Only when light levels increased to .45 foot/ candles (roughly the equivalent of car headlights at 30'), did their success rate reach 75 percent. Simply put … without a light, you’re guessing.
WWW.AMERICANHANDGUNNER.COM
Don’t allow yourself to be backlit in doors or windows. Try to see things from the assailant’s point of view.
Over the years, a number of fl ash-
light assisted shooting techniques have been developed to enhance performance in low light. Some have proven to be very good, while others have come up short. We also need to recognize that the search and shoot- ing functions are a bit different. Hav- ing your pistol locked up with the light is great for shooting, but not for routine searching. I’ve had the good fortune of taking
in some fi rst-rate, low-light training. While I don’t consider myself an ex- pert on the topic, I’ve gained a pretty good idea of what actually works and what we should be doing. The most obvious is that since most deadly force encounters occur in low light, our training should mirror that trend. And when we do get out to train, let’s keep it practical. Clearing multiple room structures containing lots of bad guys is certainly appropriate for the special ops ninjas, but just might put the responsible citizen or even
the patrol cop into overload. When weighing low-light training, consider the “Three S Doctrine.” Is it simple, street proven and does it make sense? If the answer to any of these questions “no,” move on. Quality, low-light training should include live fi re and force-on-force exercises based on in- cidents likely to occur in real life.
What Makes A Good Light? Heavy-duty, police-grade fl ash-
lights with rechargeable nickel ca- dium batteries arrived on the scene in the l970s and represented a quan- tum leap over what had come before. These heavy D-cell diameter lights can still fi ll many roles, but for tacti- cal illumination, I have come to fa- vor the smaller tailcap units. These compact lights are capable of just as much or, in some cases, even more light output than the larger units and can be discreetly carried at all times. Quality
tactical-grade fl ash- lights are available from a variety of
SureFire 400X combines a bright illuminator with a laser aimer.
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