2014 has now come to a close. It was a year that has proven particularly deadly for our nation’s law enforcement officers. Although the overall trend of officer deaths has been downward over several years, they unfortunately increased over last year’s total.
I think it is important to review some specifics concerning the law enforcement line of duty deaths our communities, states, and nation have suffered in 2014.
(Source: “Officer Down Memorial Page” [ODMP] at www.odmp.org/search/year/2014.)
Total Line of Duty Deaths: 118 (up from 110 last year, this represents an average of one line of duty death about every three days)
Feloniously killed: 59 (an average of one officer feloniously killed about every six days)
Gunfire: 47
Assault: 2
47 deaths by gunfire in 2014 represents an increase of 17 over last year’s total of 30.
Other causes: 59 (an average of one officer otherwise killed or died about every six days)
Heart attack: 15
Drowned: 1
Fire: 1
26 deaths by automobile accident in 2014 represents an increase of one over last year’s total of 25.
Statistically, the deadliest month in 2014 was May, with 18 line of duty deaths and the deadliest state was California, with 14 line of duty deaths. This is the most line of duty deaths for a single year in California since 2008. The only other state with double-digit losses in 2014 was Texas, with 11.
114 of the officers were male and four were female. The average age of the officers was 40 and the average service length was 12 years, 3 months.
(Note: The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund (NLEOMF) also tracks annual police line of duty deaths and offers slightly different figures. For their preliminary 2014 summary please click here and here.)
Since Long Beach first incorporated in 1897, 28 of its police officers have died in the line of duty, the first, Officer Thomas Borden, was shot and killed in 1912. Since then Long Beach has experienced an average of one officer line of duty death about every 3 1/2 years. 11 of these deaths (or about 41%) have been by gunfire, the most common cause. Four of the total deaths occurred during my tenure with LBPD: Corporal Ed Davenport, Officer Daryle Black, Officer Karl Simons, and Officer Philip Stabile (LBCC Police.)
Officers Assaulted 2013
Unfortunately officer deaths are not the only indicator of the risks we ask our police officers to face each year. While other professions certainly are deadlier in terms of industrial accidents, law enforcement is unique in that in no other publicly-paid, civilian profession is it commonplace for practitioners to be murdered or assaulted just for trying to do their jobs.
Recently released, these are the latest assault statistics available.
(Source: Federal Bureau of Investigation at www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/leoka/2013.)
The FBI collected assault data from 11,468 law enforcement agencies that employed 533,895 officers.
These agencies reported that 49,851 officers were assaulted while performing their duties in 2013 (down from 52,901 in 2012 and represents an average of 136 assaults on police officers per day.)
Circumstances
Of the total, 31.2 percent were responding to disturbance calls (family quarrels, bar fights, etc.), 16.3 percent were attempting other arrests, and 12.8 percent were handling, transporting, or maintaining custody of prisoners.
Assignments
62.7 percent of the officers who were assaulted were assigned to 1-officer vehicle patrols, 17.3 percent were assaulted were assigned to 2-officer vehicle patrols, 15.6 were assigned to other duties, and 4.4 percent were assigned to detective duties or special assignments.
Weapons
79.8 percent of officers who were assaulted were attacked with personal weapons (e.g., hands, fists, or feet), 13.9 percent with “other dangerous weapons”, 4.5 percent were with firearms and, 1.8 percent with knives or other cutting instruments.
This means that in 2013 there were over 2243 assaults on police officers with firearms, or over 6 assaults on police officers with firearms per day.)
It is my hope and prayer that 2015 proves far less deadly and hazardous for the men and women -of all races, colors, and creeds- who serve as law-enforcers and peace-keepers in communities and states across our nation.
Editor’s note: the views expressed in this OP-ED do not necessarily reflect those of the Long Beach Post, its staff, or its ownership. To submit a letter to the editor or an OP-ED, please email [email protected].