Death on Patrol: Killings of American Law Enforcement Officers

• NCJ Number: 141086
• Author(s): L A Fridell; A M Pate
• Date Published: 1992
• Length: 43 pages
• Grant Number(s): 91-IJ-CX-K025
• Agencies: NIJ-Sponsored

Annotation

Based on data compiled by the Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) program of the FBI, this report reviews the current literature and research on the incidence of police killings, with a particular emphasis on the duty-related felonious deaths of law enforcement officers in the U.S.

Abstract

According to UCR data, the number of law enforcement officers who were feloniously killed declined from a high of 134 in 1973 to below 100 per year in the early 1980's; the number fell again in the late 1980's to the present rate of between 65 and 70 police homicides per year. This decline is attributed by some analysts to the introduction of soft body armor in the 1970's and the enhancement of police training procedures. Furthermore, many police departments have revised their policies to minimize the dangers run by their officers. This report discusses the geographic and demographic context of police shootings, the weapons used to kill officers, the offense circumstances, the characteristics of the police victims and their assailants, and the punitive consequences for the offenders. A separate section of the report examines the circumstances surrounding the 1,148 accidental deaths of on-duty police officers that occurred between 1980 and 1991. 4 tables, 5 figures, 2 notes, and 90 references