Best distance for head shots

[223man]

Hello everyone, my name is John I am a long time reader first time poster. So, I read something some where along time ago (I think it may have been a training video or some such thing). That had a "at what distance should you try for the head shot." Now I do not remember exactly how that was worded but you get the idea. So I have my own idea about when this would be or rather what distance this would be. My thinking is a maximum range of 5 yards. Reasons are because first and foremost at that range the attacker is basically right on you and you need to stop him right now. Second reason is the head is kinda small and has lots of movement to it. So you should have more of a chance to hit it than when they are at a greater distance. What do you guys think?

Thank you.

[Dropkick]

I think that it depends.

[Kyle Reese]

I think you should look into taking a handgun course from a reputable firm/trainer so you can experience first hand how difficult making precision shots at ____ distance can be with a handgun while stressed, fatigued, etc.

Not intended to be snarky, OP.

[rsa-otc]

As dropkick says IT DEPENDS on:

Your skill set
Are you moving
Is your attacker moving
Is the head the only available target
and so on.

As FredM has said you should take a course with a respected trainer so you may have a basis o make your decision at the time of the attack. Not something you can decide ahead of time with certainty.

[Sparks2112]

Think the furthest I would try one would be about 6 inches unless I was shooting at a stationary target that was unaware of my presence and had a clear backstop behind it.

[DocGKR]

I know of at least one CA LE agency that extensively trained to target the CNS whenever possible in lethal force encounters at ranges out to about 10 yds--they were very successful in their OIS incidents when using this technique...

[ToddG]

Add me to the list of folks who say "it depends."

Distance, movement, lighting, intermediate barriers, surrounding objects, and immediacy/speed are all factors that get weighed against your skill, mental state, and physical condition.

It goes without saying, people who put time and effort into making low% shots under difficult circumstances will have more skill and confidence to pull off such a shot when it counts.

Sometimes the fastest way to get fast is to go faster.
Todd Louis Green, pistol-training.com
Train hard & stay safe!
"Speed is the essence of war." Sun Tzu

[223man]

Thanks guys for your inputs and also for not killing me on my first post,lol.

[Sparks2112]

Thanks guys for your inputs and also for not killing me on my first post,lol.

Oh we aren't that bad usually.

[YVK]

Distance, movement, lighting, intermediate barriers, surrounding objects, and immediacy/speed are all factors that get weighed against your skill, mental state, and physical condition.

It goes without saying, people who put time and effort into making low% shots under difficult circumstances will have more skill and confidence to pull off such a shot when it counts.

It would be interesting to objectify this anyway. Many, if not most, of p-f.com members practice hitting reduced sized targets at speed pretty regularly. I am sure, or at least I hope, that most here know how fast (or slow) to go to get a near-100% hit rate on 3x5 at 7-8 yards.
DocGKR alluded to an LE unit making CNS shots what sounds like a ROE within a certain distance. I've heard of a number of other units, LE and MIL both in- and outside of US, doing same. I'd be very curious to know what speed/ accuracy standards are required to be met in training to accept such ROE, especially given liabilities of missing intended targets in OIS.