NCJ Number
159703
Journal
CJ The Americas Volume: 8 Issue: 2 Dated: (April-May 1995) Pages: 13-14
Date Published
1995
Length
2 pages
Annotation
This paper presents statistics from the Uniform Crime Report Unit of the FBI regarding attacks on police officers and police officer fatalities between 1984 and 1993.
Abstract
During that period the number of police officers killed remained relatively constant, from a high of 78 in 1985 to a low of 62 in 1992. The number of assaults on law enforcement officers fluctuated greatly while gradually increasing significantly from a low of 58,752 in 1989 to 81,252 in 1992. However, these statistics must be considered in terms of other factors such as the number of police officers who actually sustained personal injuries in assaults, the types of weapons used in the attacks, and the incidents in which assaults and murders occurred. Although most assaults were committed using personal weapons rather than firearms, 91.5 percent of the police fatalities resulted from firearms. In addition, 37.8 percent of the officers killed were wearing body armor. Among the 67 firearms deaths in 1993, 50 involved handguns, 14 involved rifles, and three involved shotguns. In 70 percent of the incidents, the suspect was within 10 feet of the police officer. Disturbance calls, arrest situations, investigation of suspicious persons/circumstances, and traffic stops accounted for 61 percent of the murders. Findings indicated that the increased availability of firearms in the United States has had a major impact on society; without improved medical techniques and vests, the number of deaths would have increased in a similar proportion to the increase in firearms assaults. Tables