Officers Feloniously Killed

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The following information concerns law enforcement officers who died in the line of duty in 2019 as a result of felonious incidents. The law enforcement officers included in this report met certain criteria, such as they had full arrest powers and they ordinarily wore/carried a badge and firearm.

Overview

• In 2019, 48 law enforcement officers died from injuries incurred in the line of duty during felonious incidents. (See Table 1.)
• Line-of-duty deaths occurred in 19 states and Puerto Rico. (See Table 1.)
• By region, 27 officers were feloniously killed in the South, 9 officers in the Midwest, 9 officers in the West, 1 officer in the Northeast, and 2 officers in Puerto Rico. (See Table 1.)
• Of the officers feloniously killed, 25 were employed by city police departments, including 7 who were members of law enforcement agencies in cities with between 100,000 and 249,999 inhabitants. (See Table 2.)

Victim profile

• The average age of the officers who were feloniously killed in 2019 was 40 years old. (See Table 10.)
• The slain officers’ average length of law enforcement service was 13 years. (See Table 11.)
• Of the officers who died due to felonious incidents in 2019, 45 were male and 3 were female. (See Table 15.)
• By race, 40 of the victim officers were White, 7 were Black/African American, and 1 was Asian. (See Table 15.)

Circumstances encountered by victim officer upon arrival at the scene of the incident (See Table 24.)

• 15 officers died as a result of investigative/enforcement activities.
• 6 were conducting traffic violation stops.
• 4 were performing investigative activities.
• 2 were interacting with wanted persons.
• 2 were investigating drug-related matters.
• 1 was investigating a suspicious person or circumstance.
• 9 officers were involved in tactical situations.
• 3 were involved in barricade/hostage situations.
• 3 were serving/attempting to serve search warrants.
• 2 were serving/attempting to serve arrest warrants.
• 1 was reported in the category titled “other tactical situation.”
• 5 officers were victims of unprovoked attacks.
• 4 officers responded to crimes in progress.
• 2 were robberies.
• 1 was a larceny-theft.
• 1 was reported in the category titled “other crime against property.”
• 3 officers were involved in vehicular pursuits.
• 3 officers were attempting to restrain/control/handcuff offenders during arrest situations.
• 3 officers were assisting other law enforcement officers.
• 2 with vehicular pursuits.
• 1 with foot pursuit.
• 3 officers responded to disorders/disturbances.
• 2 were responding to disturbances (disorderly subjects, fights, etc.).
• 1 was responding to a domestic violence situation.
• 2 officers were ambushed (entrapment/premeditation).
• 1 officer was serving/attempting to serve a court order (eviction notice, subpoena, etc.).

Assignments (See Table 21.)

• 30 officers were on assigned vehicle patrol when the felonious incidents occurred.
• 4 officers were on special assignments.
• 3 officers were assigned to investigative/detective duties.
• 3 officers were on tactical assignments (uniformed).
• 2 officers were working undercover.
• 1 officer was reported to be working in the category titled “other assignment.”
• 5 slain officers were off duty (but acting in official capacities) at the time of the incidents.
• 26 on-duty officers who died in 2019 were assisted at the times of the attacks.
• 17 on-duty officers were alone and unassisted at the times of the attacks.

Weapons

• Of the 48 officers feloniously killed in 2019, most (44) were killed with firearms. Of these, 34 were killed with handguns. (See Table 28.)
• 10 officers fired their weapons; 6 officers attempted to fire their weapons. (See Table 18.)
• No officers’ weapons were stolen during the incidents. (Based on Table 19.)
• 14 officers were slain with firearms when they were less than 5 feet from the offenders. (See Table 32.)

Body armor

• In 2019, 30 of the officers feloniously killed were wearing body armor at the time of the incidents. (See Table 35.)
• Of these officers, 29 were killed with firearms (see Table 36) and incurred the following wounds:
• 8 were shot in the front upper torso/chest.
• 6 suffered wounds to the front of the head.
• 3 were wounded in the side of the head.
• 2 were shot in the neck/throat.
• 2 were shot in the rear of the head.
• 2 were shot in the front lower torso/abdomen.
• 2 were shot in the shoulder (upper torso) area.
• 2 were shot in the rear lower torso/back.
• 1 was shot in the rear upper torso/back.
• 1 was shot in the front below the waist/groin area.

Months, days, and times of incidents

• More officers (8) died from felonious assaults that occurred in December than in any other month in 2019. (See Table 9.)
• More officers (15) were involved in fatal assaults that occurred on Saturdays than on any other days of the week. (See Table 6.)
• 34 officers were fatally injured in assaults that happened between 12:01 p.m. and midnight. (See Table 7.)
• 13 officers were fatally injured in assaults that happened between 12:01 a.m. and noon. (See Table 7.)
• The time of the assault was not reported for 1 of the officers.

Profile of alleged known assailants

In 2019, 49 alleged offenders were identified in connection with the 48 law enforcement officers feloniously killed. Of those offenders, the following characteristics are known:

• The average age of the alleged offenders was 31 years old. (See Table 40.)
• The average height was 5 feet 10 inches tall, and the average weight was 181 pounds. (See Table 41.)
• 48 alleged offenders were male; 1 was female. (See Table 42.)
• 28 of the alleged offenders were White, 15 were Black/African American, and 1 was Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander. Race was not reported for 5 of the alleged offenders. (See Table 42.)
• 12 of the alleged offenders were under judicial supervision at the time of the incidents. (See Table 45.)
• 9 of the alleged offenders were under the influence of alcohol and/or a controlled substance at the time of the fatal incidents. (See Table 45.)
• 36 of the alleged offenders had prior criminal arrests. (See Table 46.)

Information about officers feloniously killed can be found in Tables 1-47 of this report.