Author

William Bell

I have been shooting since I was 12 years old. I started out with BB and pellet guns, and when I was 16, received a 20 ga. single-shot shotgun. That would've been 55 years ago. I was mainly into hunting guns until I started college in 1972 and began working towards a degree in Criminal Justice. At that point, I bought a S&W Model 18 .22 Combat Masterpiece and later a Model 28 .357 Highway Patrolman. That big .357 Magnum started me on the road as a handloader. In 1976, I graduated, got my CJ degree, plus a commission as a 2 Lt. in the Army Reserves. After training, I found a slot in the 198th MP Battalion, 438th Co., 1st Platoon Leader, Kentucky Army National Guard. My expertise with the 1911A1 .45 pistol was noted, and I became a member of the KYARNG Combat Pistol Team. I shot in competition for two years at the Winston P. Wilson Matches at Camp Robinson, in North Little Rock, AR, and won an Excellence in Competition Medal. After my MP training, I came home and entered law enforcement. I started in a small town Kentucky PD, left there, and became a patrolman with the Housing Authority of Louisville PD. In late 1978, I moved to Metairie, Louisiana, outside New Orleans, and became a deputy with the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office. While there, I became a member of the S.O. PPC Shooting Team, and competed in regional matches. If left there in May 1982 and became an Agent with the U.S. Border Patrol. I had my first gun article published in 1983 in the Police Marksman magazine. By February 1988, I had transferred to U.S. Customs. While stationed in Calexico, California, I shot competitively with the port pistol team and participated in matches in El Centro and Yuma. It was during this period that I began writing for Combat Handguns magazine (Harris Publications). They later came out with a magazine called Guns & Weapons for Law Enforcement, and I was listed on the masthead as a Contributing Editor. In 1991, I transferred to a Customs Anti-Smuggling Unit (ASU) at the UPS Hub in Louisville, KY. While there, I began competing in Cowboy Action Shooting, and LaVista Bill was born. I soon began writing for Guns of the Old West magazine, and eventually became Sr. Contributing Editor doing the Western Words column. While in U.S. Customs, I became a collateral-duty firearms instructor, and was the PFI in Louisville. Later in 1996 after a 3-month TDY as an instructor at the FLETC, I was promoted to supervisor and transferred to the ASU at the FedEx Hub in Indianapolis. There I continued as a FI and did this for a total of 17 years. I also continued to write and did articles for Harris Publications, then Athlon Outdoors, then Bleecker Street. I've also done some work over the years for The Blue Press, Guns, Gun Digest, the NRA, and Police magazine. As gun articles moved online, my writing opportunities have expanded, and I now do work for Lipsey's Bulletin, GunBroker.com, Midsouth Shot Report, Davidson's Insights, and Gun Tales. in 2000, I was promoted to U.S. Customs Port Director in Indianapolis. My LE career ended in 2014 when I retired with 38 years as a LEO. In all, I have been shooting and writing about guns for some 43 years. I don't know if that qualifies me as an expert, but I generally know what I'm talking about.

I have been shooting since I was 12 years old. I started out with BB and pellet guns, and when I was 16, received a 20 ga. single-shot shotgun. That would've been 55 years ago. I was mainly into hunting guns until I started college in 1972 and began working towards a degree in Criminal Justice. At that point, I bought a S&W Model 18 .22 Combat Masterpiece and later a Model 28 .357 Highway Patrolman. That big .357 Magnum started me on the road as a handloader. In 1976, I graduated, got my CJ degree, plus a commission as a 2 Lt. in the Army Reserves. After training, I found a slot in the 198th MP Battalion, 438th Co., 1st Platoon Leader, Kentucky Army National Guard. My expertise with the 1911A1 .45 pistol was noted, and I became a member of the KYARNG Combat Pistol Team. I shot in competition for two years at the Winston P. Wilson Matches at Camp Robinson, in North Little Rock, AR, and won an Excellence in Competition Medal. After my MP training, I came home and entered law enforcement. I started in a small town Kentucky PD, left there, and became a patrolman with the Housing Authority of Louisville PD. In late 1978, I moved to Metairie, Louisiana, outside New Orleans, and became a deputy with the Jefferson Parish Sheriff's Office. While there, I became a member of the S.O. PPC Shooting Team, and competed in regional matches. If left there in May 1982 and became an Agent with the U.S. Border Patrol. I had my first gun article published in 1983 in the Police Marksman magazine. By February 1988, I had transferred to U.S. Customs. While stationed in Calexico, California, I shot competitively with the port pistol team and participated in matches in El Centro and Yuma. It was during this period that I began writing for Combat Handguns magazine (Harris Publications). They later came out with a magazine called Guns & Weapons for Law Enforcement, and I was listed on the masthead as a Contributing Editor. In 1991, I transferred to a Customs Anti-Smuggling Unit (ASU) at the UPS Hub in Louisville, KY. While there, I began competing in Cowboy Action Shooting, and LaVista Bill was born. I soon began writing for Guns of the Old West magazine, and eventually became Sr. Contributing Editor doing the Western Words column. While in U.S. Customs, I became a collateral-duty firearms instructor, and was the PFI in Louisville. Later in 1996 after a 3-month TDY as an instructor at the FLETC, I was promoted to supervisor and transferred to the ASU at the FedEx Hub in Indianapolis. There I continued as a FI and did this for a total of 17 years. I also continued to write and did articles for Harris Publications, then Athlon Outdoors, then Bleecker Street. I've also done some work over the years for The Blue Press, Guns, Gun Digest, the NRA, and Police magazine. As gun articles moved online, my writing opportunities have expanded, and I now do work for Lipsey's Bulletin, GunBroker.com, Midsouth Shot Report, Davidson's Insights, and Gun Tales. in 2000, I was promoted to U.S. Customs Port Director in Indianapolis. My LE career ended in 2014 when I retired with 38 years as a LEO. In all, I have been shooting and writing about guns for some 43 years. I don't know if that qualifies me as an expert, but I generally know what I'm talking about.

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