How about a. .45ACP using 200 grain hard cast SWC over 4.8 grains of bullseye? Very controllable, makes “major” power factor, functions perfectly, and leaves a big hole without any dependency on the voodoo magic of “expansion”.

I know, I know: whenever I fire my .45, my vagina hurts.

A full size 1911 is a good sized pistol without argument. There are lots of 9mm pistols that are somewhat smaller and a little lighter with advantages catering to the unwashed masses with marginal interest in shooting.

Consider this:

The super high degree of shooting skills that 95% of LEOs possess (sarcasm) can make use of the extra fire power of the typical 9mm pistol for their documented spray and pray approach to shooting under pressure. The SWAT teams as well as the coppers who are also sport shooters are a bit of an exception on this one..... those guys know how to shoot because they tend to love shooting, therefore practice lots. The LEOs that are in the profession because of the love of solving crime are not necessarily driven by a love of shooting. If you’re not passionate about something, you’ll never be truly good at it. In this case, the gun is more of an extra weight on the equipment belt, like the flashlight, folding knife, cuffs, and radio, so arm them with something that is light and easier to shoot, even though it may be more ineffective at stopping an assailant. Let’s face it, most LEOs never fire their pistol in the line of duty, but if the need does arise, ANY pistol is better than no pistol at all in a tough situation where one may be required to shoot to save one’s life.