Sheriff’s Office holds range week
The law enforcement firing range on Shull Road in Hartselle stayed hot this past week with a week–long weapons training event held by the Morgan County Sheriff’s Office.
The agency participated in the annual training mandated by the Alabama Police Officer Standards and Training Commission. It is required for every law enforcement agency and officer who carries a firearm, according to MCSO public information officer Mike Swafford.
“It’s based around accuracy,” Swafford said. “About 140-150 members go through the qualification process on each weapon they use.”
It takes a minimum score of 70 to pass the course, Swafford added, saying instructors must score 100. He said most officers with the MCSO are in the 94-96 range.
“We hold ourselves to a higher standard and shoot for an 80 or above,” he said. “The course starts at the 25 (yard) line and moves in.”
Timed shots are taken at yard lines marked at 25, 15, 7 and 5 yards. Participants take a total of 100 hundred shots, with each bullet valued at two points.
“The majority of all shootings are within 15 and more than likely within 7, yards,” Swafford said. “So, it’s good if you can hit (the target) at 25 (yards) – you’ll do good the rest of the way.”
Swafford said MCSO instructors are called Glock Armorers, which means they have gone through a course and are certified to take the weapons apart. “They touch every weapon.”
The weeklong event has become, in recent years, more like a homecoming for nearly 180 employees of the Morgan County Sheriff’s Office, Swafford said.
“The way our agency operates, there’s basically two separate agencies that don’t work together: If you work these two days, you’re off the other days,” he said. “We call it our range week, but it’s sort of like a homecoming. We grill burgers and get to have some camaraderie.
Outside of meeting state requirements, Swafford said the event gives officers a chance to work on their accuracy as well as get help with anything they might be struggling with.
“The other benefit is, if somebody has picked up a bad habit, or someone is struggling with something, the instructors can then work with them and make sure they are proficient.”
