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Andy knows his stuff. He is correct in his statements about under-penetration and the myth of the “Energy Dump” at handgun velocities. Rifle velocities are a little different but penetration is still a must.

A frangible bullet or thin jacketed HP at high speed will make a horrible wound in man or animal, and they will probably die from that type of injury- eventually. In order to put someone or something down for good as quickly as possible you must have enough penetration to reach and take out vital organs, load bearing bones and or major blood bearing vessels. Unless of course you can hit the central nervous system or brain stem.

Most of the premium HP bullets available today have a pretty good expansion to penetration ratio; some like the Glaser do not. A heavier bullet with some expansion is a good compromise, like the Speer Gold Dot 230gr 45ACP ammo or the same bullet in 180gr S&W40.

With a 380ACP I would opt for penetration over expansion.