I have noticed a pretty steady decline in even Washington DC special police officers carrying S&W wheelguns. Glocks seem to be the primary replacement. Special police are effectively armed security guards in the context of the rest of the country, but DC always has to be special. That said, armed security is fairly common throughout DC and have been killed protecting people such as the National Holocaust Museum shooting.

I also see much fewer Chicago PD airport officers at O’Hare and Midway with wheel guns anymore. Five years ago, an officer with a semi auto looked like a SWAT Tackleberry, usually younger and much fitter than the majority of officers. Today, there are few of the revolvers listing out from the belt at a 45 degree angle in horribly worn holsters. I cannot think of another airport law enforcement presence that I see with revolvers in the last five years.

I did pass an older plainclothes guy likely waiting to pick up a prisoner transfer in the O’Hare terminal last fall. At a distance, he seemed to have the Marshals Service look, but as I drew closer, he had a Chicago Shield clipped next to what looked to be silver Smith 469 (or similar). The gun carrier was clearly on point so I didn’t approach to ask questions, but the general vibe was he likely was maintaining his 30+ year old gun.