4.12.2011

1986 FBI Miami shootout - 25th anniversary



FBI commemorates a bloody 1986 shootout in Miami

Excerpt:

The FBI commemorated one of the bloodiest events in its history Monday on the 25th anniversary of a Miami shootout that killed two agents and wounded five others, leading the bureau to adopt more powerful weapons, better body armor and improved tactics in violent confrontations.

FBI Director Robert Mueller and William Webster, the FBI director when the gun battle with two bank robbers took place, were among several hundred law enforcement personnel who gathered to honor the memories of agents Benjamin P. Grogan and Jerry Dove. Also present was a survivor who was wounded in the shootout, retired agent John F. Hanlon Jr.

"I'm very, very proud of what we did that day. We all did our duty. And we did the best we could," Hanlon said. "They laid down their lives gallantly for their country."

On April 11, 1986, the FBI agents were closing in on a pair of robbers who had shot several guards during a string of bank and armored car robberies. Following them in cars through a quiet neighborhood south of Miami, agents saw the pair loading a weapon and decided to make a traffic stop that ended with one agent ramming the suspects' car.

Hanlon said that earlier that morning Grogan, a 25-year veteran of the FBI, knew they'd probably run into trouble once they caught the men later identified as William Matix, 24, and Michael Lee Platt, 32.

Comment: WIKI: 1986 FBI Miami shootout

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1 comment:

  1. It's worth noting that the lack of effectiveness of the 9mm round (9mmx19, .357, .380) wasn't just proved back in the late 1980s; similar rounds were tested prior to the release of the 1911, and found wanting. Similar things were noted regarding the 9mm Walther carried by German officers in World War II.

    But nah, we can't actually remember what we learned, can we?

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