Law Enforcement Sniper Training

Certain segments of law enforcement need snipers.

Sniper training is essential for some segments of law enforcement. SWAT teams need snipers, as do many of the federal law enforcement agencies. Accuracy is obviously extremely important, as are a number of other skills that might not be so apparent. Not every officer is cut out to be a sniper. The training process helps determine who should be behind a sniper rifle and who should not.

A Need to Remain Covert

The law enforcement community does not want to share secrets.

The FBI does not list "Sniper Training" on any of its literature. The FBI, as well as other law enforcement agencies, do not want to "tip their hand" to the segment of humanity that may one day find itself in the crosshairs of an FBI sniper's rifle. The need to remain covert about this part of training is understandable.

Personality is Important

Much more than skilled marksmanship is required of a sniper.

Snipers need to be emotionally stable, reliable, and disciplined. Some psychological profiling must be done on any volunteer for sniper school to assure they have the profile suited to the job. Obviously, they begin as excellent marksmen and the coaching and training at law enforcement schools hone their rifle skills to a fine edge.

Distance of an Average Shot

Police snipers typically use a .308 caliber rifle.

Snipers generally use a scoped .308-caliber bolt-action rifle. These rifles can be extremely accurate in the hands of a sniper. Military snipers also train on .50-caliber rifles for extremely long distance shots but this is not needed for law enforcement snipers. The average shot for a police sniper is slightly over 50 yards. There is also limited use in law enforcement of sniping with the 5.56 NATO rifle.

Training Subjects

There is much to learn besides marksmanship.

Snipers receive training on target selection, especially what is around and behind the target. They also learn proper breathing techniques, correct body position and the effect of wind and distance on the bullets they fire. They also learn to disassemble, clean and re-assemble their weapons.

Shorter Schools than the Military

The FBI, among others, uses real-world scenarios in training.

Law enforcement sniper training also tend to be much shorter than that of military schools. While military school training typically takes up to two months, law enforcement schools generally take about a week. Some of the time discrepancy can be attributed to the fact that many military snipers become police snipers. Those people are a great asset to the law enforcement community. There is also a large number of private training companies that are contracted for training police snipers and some snipers seek out additional training on their own. The FBI actually built its own town to use in real-world training.

References

• All Business: Average Police Sniper Distances
• Federal Bureau of Investigation: The Baddest Town in America
• Operational Tactics: Sniper Tactics & Operation
• Center Mass, Inc.: Sniper Schools