We were going thru a significant change in what was carried - the majority of LEO's were converting from .38 revolvers to polymer 9mms, and the 1911 had just been phased out for the +M9.
The above is sometimes repeated on the internet but is incorrect. The conversion by the late and mid 1980s was to steel and alloy framed semis and was well under way by the time Glcoks arrived in the U.S.
The guns that led the way in the transition from revolvers to the semi-auto in law enforcement in the U.S. were the "Wondernines" the S&W third gen pistols, the Berreta M92 and the a few offerings from H&K. The transition first went here, it was still underway when Glocks arrived in the U.S. and Glock accelerated it.
Glocks showed up in the U.S. about 1986 or so (Glock is celebrating it's 30th year in the U.S. this year) but in small numbers. They first caught attention as the guns that could not be seen in X-Ray machines. This free publicity helped there sales greatly. By the end of 1986 over 1,000 requests from law enforcement agencies in the U.S. for free samples of the gun for examination and testing had been received by Glock sales reps, so they claimed. Sales began to rise slowly afterward and then quickly. By the early 1990s Glocks began to be adopted by law enforcement in large quantities, especially in 40 S&W caliber.
By the time of the Miami shootout, 1986, the transition to the 9mm from revolvers was well under way. Most departments, that had switched to semis carried either the Beretta M92 or any of several S&W pistols offered in 9mm. S&W pistols dominated the law enforcement market along with their revolvers at the time, with Beretta following second and H&K behind. Glock did not lead the way in this.
The FBI in Miami carried S&W 9mm pistols and the M13 revolver. It was FBI Agent Edmundo Mireles who killed both Platt and Matix, both already fatally wounded, with shots from a S&W .357 revolver loaded with +P 38 Spl. 158 gr. LSWCHP loads. Which was the FBI's preferred loads for the M13.
The 9mm Silvertip round which struck Platt hit him from the side, penetrated his right bi-cep, entered his body and penetrated his right lung (collapsing it) and stopped about an inch from his heart, expanded. This left him with only minutes to live unless he received immediate medical attention. He could also still fight on until then. That's what he did, until Mireles shot and killed him with a 38 Spl. from feet away.
The reports on the Miami shoot out are available online. The time frame of Glocks arrival in the U.S. and the pace of the transition to the semis from revolvers are also well documented.
The Silvertip round was greatly improved on over the decades that followed.
tipoc