High Quality Content by WIKIPEDIA articles! A riot shotgun is a shotgun designed or modified for use as a primarily defensive weapon, by the use of a short barrel and a larger magazine capacity than shotguns marketed for hunting. The riot shotgun is used by military personnel for guard duty and was at one time used for riot control, and is commonly used as a patrol weapon by law enforcement personnel, as well as a home defense weapon by private citizens. Guns of this type are often labeled as tactical shotguns or special-purpose shotguns to denote the larger scope of their use, however these are largely marketing terms.