The .40 Pistol is a good, all-round pistol, based on the Beretta 96 series handguns. While not capable of dismembering people, it can kill them in two shots. It has a 15-round magazine, making it the highest capacity handgun in the game. The large magazine capacity can be very helpful in large scale firefights when multiple targets must be taken down quickly.
Terry uses a .40 Pistol to save Marcus's life when one of Kevlar's thugs nearly shot him in the back.