According to preliminary data compiled by the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, 64 law enforcement officers have been killed in the line of duty during the first half of 2015. This represents a 3% increase over the same period in 2014 in which 62 officers were killed.
For the third year in a row, traffic-related incidents were the leading cause of officer fatalities in the first half of 2015. Thirty officers were killed as a result of traffic-related incidents, increasing 20% from the same period in 2014.
Firearms-related fatalities were the second leading cause of death among our nation’s law enforcement officers in the first half of 2015, decreasing 25% with 18 fatalities compared to 24 in the same period last year.
Officers feloniously killed during a traffic stop or pursuit was the leading circumstance of fatal shootings, with four fatalities.
In the first half of 2015, 16 officers died as a result of other causes unrelated to firearms or traffic, increasing 23% during the same period in 2014.
Job-related illnesses, such as heart attacks, increased in the first half of 2015, with 16 officer deaths compared to 13 officers during the same period in 2014.
Sixty-two fallen officers were male and two were female. Their average age was 40 years, with 13 years of service. On average, each officer left behind two children.
Read the full report at www.LawMemorial.org/ResearchBulletin.
About the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund
Established in 1984, the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund is a non-profit organization dedicated to telling the story of American law enforcement and making it safer for those who serve. The Memorial Fund is now working to create the National Law Enforcement Museum, which will tell the story of law enforcement through high-tech, interactive exhibitions, historical artifacts and extensive educational programming. For more information, visit www.LawMemorial.org.
