Highlights
The rate of officers assaulted has increased each of the past three years.
The study of the data reveals, from 2021 to 2023, more officers were feloniously (emphasis added) killed (194) than in any other consecutive three-year period in the past 20 years.
Agencies reported 79,091 officers were assaulted in 2023, marking the highest officer assault rate in the past 10 years.
The number of officers assaulted and injured by firearms has climbed over the years, reaching a 10-year high in 2023.
Author
Leonard Adam Sipes, Jr.
Former Senior Specialist for Crime Prevention and Statistics for the Department of Justice’s clearinghouse. Former Director of Information Services, National Crime Prevention Council. Former Adjunct Associate Professor of Criminology and Public Affairs-University of Maryland, University College. Former police officer. Retired federal senior spokesperson.
Former advisor to presidential and gubernatorial campaigns. Former advisor to the “McGruff-Take a Bite Out of Crime” national media campaign. Produced successful state anti-crime media campaigns.
Thirty-five years of directing award-winning (50+) public relations for national and state criminal justice agencies. Interviewed thousands of times by every national news outlet, often with a focus on crime statistics and research. Created the first state and federal podcasting series. Produced a unique and emulated style of government proactive public relations.
Certificate of Advanced Study-The Johns Hopkins University.
Author of ”Success With The Media: Everything You Need To Survive Reporters and Your Organization” available at Amazon and additional booksellers.
Sign up for notice of new articles on the front page of this site.
Article
The FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) Program released Officers Killed and Assaulted in the Line of Duty, 2023 Special Report and data from the Law Enforcement Employee Counts on the FBI’s Crime Data Explorer at cde.ucr.cjis.gov.
Officers Killed and Assaulted in the Line of Duty, 2023 Special Report, provides preliminary counts of law enforcement officers killed and assaulted in 2023, as well as an in-depth analysis of law enforcement officers who were killed or assaulted from 2014 through 2023, based on the data voluntarily provided by law enforcement agencies to the FBI’s UCR Program.
The study of the data reveals, from 2021 to 2023, more officers were feloniously killed (194) than in any other consecutive three-year period in the past 20 years (73 officers in 2021, 61 officers in 2022, and 60 officers in 2023).
Information about offenders of officer felonious killings in 2023 show there were 57 offenders, 54 were male, 28 were white, 8 were reported as having a mental illness, and there were 32 violent prior arrests/offenses from an unknown number of offenders.
From 2014 through 2023, the South region had the most line-of-duty deaths yearly compared to other regions. There was a 38% decrease in line-of-duty deaths in the region in 2023 (20 deaths) compared to 2022 (32 deaths). Last year marked the lowest number of line-of-duty deaths in the South since 2015 (19 deaths).
While there has been a slow decline of officers feloniously killed in the line of duty over the past three years, a study of the data shows the rate of officers assaulted (emphasis added) has increased each of the past three years.
Agencies reported 79,091 officers were assaulted in 2023, marking the highest officer assault rate in the past 10 years. Most officer assaults occurred when responding to simple assaults against a non-officer (6,783 incidents), followed by drug/narcotic violations (4,879).
The number of officers assaulted and injured by firearms has climbed over the years, reaching a 10-year high in 2023 with approximately 466 officers assaulted and injured by firearms.
Also released today was 2023 information from the Law Enforcement Employee Counts Data Collection. Law enforcement agencies provide these counts to the FBI annually and account for all sworn law enforcement officers and full-time civilian employees. This information may be used by city, county, state, and federal law enforcement agencies to establish manpower needs, both number and makeup, to provide effective enforcement and protection.
The annual Law Enforcement Officers Killed and Assaulted publication will be released later this year and will consist of data tables on law enforcement officers who were feloniously and accidentally killed and assaulted in the line of duty in 2023.
Conclusions
There are a variety of reasons for total police officer deaths (i.e., COVID) or traffic fatalities.
“Police Week gives us an important opportunity to recognize and thank those heroes who walk among us—the men and women of courage and character who think of others before themselves, no matter the cost,” FBI Director Christopher Wray said in a May 13 video message.
Privacy Policy
We do not collect your personal information. See our privacy policy at “About This Site.”
See More
See more articles on crime and justice at Crime in America.
Most Dangerous Cities/States/Countries at Most Dangerous Cities.
US Crime Rates at Nationwide Crime Rates.
National Offender Recidivism Rates at Offender Recidivism.
The Crime in America.Net RSS feed (https://crimeinamerica.net/?feed=rss2) provides subscribers with a means to stay informed about the latest news, publications, and other announcements from the site.