NCJ Number
161218
Date Published
1995
Length
12 pages
Annotation
Growing evidence indicates that criminals, especially young offenders, have armed themselves with assault weapons and semiautomatic handguns sold with high-capacity ammunition magazines, and the increasing availability of military-style assault weapons has had disastrous consequences for the law enforcement community.
Abstract
To study what percentage of fatal shootings of law enforcement officers involved assault weapons or guns sold with high-capacity magazines, data were obtained on fatal shootings reported to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) between January 1994 and September 1995. Although primary data were collected from FBI reports, supplemental information was gathered from newspapers, reference books, and telephone calls to law enforcement agencies and gun manufacturers. According to the FBI, 75 police officers were killed with firearms in 1994, the make and model of the gun were established for 57 shootings, and 10 killings involved firearms specifically prohibited by law. In 1995, 47 police officers were killed with firearms, the make and model of the gun were established for 35 shootings, and 10 killings involved firearms specifically prohibited by law. The threat to the law enforcement community from assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition magazines and provisions of the assault weapon law enacted in September 1994 are examined. 13 endnotes, 2 tables, and 1 figure