I had the option to carry an AR during my career and never bothered. I used an MP5/10mm for most of my time, but when they started calling them back in I went to a 14” 870 with slugs.

I worked two shootings with 12 gauge slugs. One was a fed who shot a guy in a car. The slug went in just under the left armpit and came out just above the belt line on the other side, carrying that dude’s life with it. Pretty impressive.

The other turned out to be a suicide. Mossberg Cruiser under the chin following an argument with the missus. Small bedroom. I couldn’t have put a paper plate on any of the four walls or ceiling without covering some portion of his formerly attached head. That was actually part of the determination of suicide - had someone else stuck the gun under his chin and done the deed there would have been a void in the new paint job.

The power of a 12 gauge slug puts it in a league of its own. Carry what you want. I’m a retired (mostly) duffer now, but when I travel I toss a 12 gauge pump full of slugs in my rig.

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“What you got, ain’t new.”