NCJ Number
126498
Date Published
1989
Length
69 pages
Annotation
During 1989, 66 law enforcement officers were killed in the line of duty in the U.S.
Abstract
Officers' deaths were recorded by law enforcement agencies in 24 states and Puerto Rico. Of the victims, 37 were employed by city police departments, 14 by county police and sheriffs' offices, and 4 by State agencies. Deaths were also reported by 3 Federal agencies; 1 territorial agency reported 8 killings. Of the 66 officers killed in 1989, 64 were male and 2 were female. Twenty-five officers were slain during arrest situations, accounting for more line-of-duty deaths than any other circumstances. Patrol officers accounted for 38 of the victims. Sixty-three of the slayings have been cleared. Fifty-four of the suspects identified had previous arrests, and 40 had a prior conviction. Firearms claimed the lives of 92 percent of the officers killed in the line of duty from 1980 through 1989. Of 90 officers wearing body armor when slain during the past 5 years, 52 suffered gunshot wounds to the head. The most populous region, the Southern States, recorded 32 of the 66 officers' fatalities in 1989. Seventy-nine officers lost their lives due to accidents occurring while performing their official duties in 1989. 5 charts and 27 tables