Yes. The .380 will surely kill someone. But that's really not the main point. The real concern is, in most cases, will the .380 quickly and reliably incapacitate your assailant before he can incapacitate you? Baring a head shot, will a couple/few slugs from a .380 prevent a large armed man from finishing his attack on you? There have been recorded instances when 5, 158 gr. SWCHP .357 magnums to the center of mass, have not taken the fight out of a large assailant. (Often a matter of shot placement.) I carried an Astra Garcia .380 for a few years, back in the day. I figured it was compact and highly concealable and was much better than nothing. But I didn't know then, what I know now. Now, what I have come to understand is, it is shot placement and rapid blood loss that counts. The bigger the hole the more blood loss. And more more power = better bone penetration.

IMO, the .380 just doesn't pack the potatoes needed for reliable and consistent disabling of a large, hyped-up or intoxicated/druged-up assailant (or other worse case scenario). I believe the .380 has it's place -- especially if you are up close and can place your shots with precision. But for general personal defense, I'll take something bigger and hotter.