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[Secret Fawful]

Source: https://www.odmp.org/search/year?year=2014
2014 specifically had 47 officer deaths by gunfire.

During 1900, there were 68.
During 1910, there were 98.
During 1920, there were 169.
During 1930, there were 192.
During 1940, there were 63.
During 1950, there were 53.
During 1960, there were 50.
During 1970, there were 111.
During 1980, there were 104.
During 1990, there were 60.
During 2000, there were 50.
During 2010, there were 59.

Here are the full list of years and gunfire statistics.

The beginning of last century until the 70s:

1900: 68
1901: 82
1902: 95
1903: 82
1904: 70
1905: 68
1906: 71
1907: 95
1908: 105
1909: 84
1910: 98
1911: 132
1912: 99
1913: 102
1914: 105
1915: 118
1916: 124
1917: 124
1918: 126
1919: 184
1920: 169
1921: 205
1922: 182
1923: 171
1924: 196
1925: 178
1926: 181
1927: 179
1928: 171
1929: 158
1930: 192
1931: 188
1932: 186
1933: 159
1934: 145
1935: 126
1936: 98
1937: 90
1938: 92
1939: 64
1940: 63
1941: 72
1942: 51
1943: 43
1944: 45
1945: 54
1946: 67
1947: 74
1948: 62
1949: 54
1950: 53
1951: 52
1952: 58
1953: 58
1954: 66
1955: 43
1956: 37
1957: 58
1958: 43
1959: 44
1960: 50
1961: 59
1962: 58
1963: 61
1964: 62
1965: 63
1966: 64
1967: 86
1968: 75
1969: 101

The 70s until the present:

1970: 111
1971: 143
1972: 121
1973: 144
1974: 140
1975: 144
1976: 105
1977: 97
1978: 101
1979: 112
1980: 104
1981: 93
1982: 93
1983: 81
1984: 72
1985: 75
1986: 75
1987: 75
1988: 79
1989: 69
1990: 60
1991: 73
1992: 64
1993: 78
1994: 85
1995: 70
1996: 60
1997: 69
1998: 64
1999: 43
2000: 50
2001: 65
2002: 57
2003: 48
2004: 56
2005: 53
2006: 51
2007: 67
2008: 41
2009: 47
2010: 59
2011: 68
2012: 48
2013: 31
2014: 47

2015: 25 so far

People have been talking about a "war on police" and how dangerous the job of law enforcement in the subject of crime rates and black civilian deaths, but the argument doesn't hold up to actual scrutiny or historical perspective. In fact, officer deaths because of firearms are the lowest they've ever been, with the exception of a couple years in the 50s. It was at its absolute highest in the 20s, 30s, and the 70s, and has currently been steadily lowering since the 70s.

Meanwhile, according to the Center For Disease Control's Fatal Injury Map for 2004-2010, firearm deaths give these statistics.

For non-Hispanic blacks: 16.94 firearm deaths per 100,000 pop
For non-Hispanic whites: 1.47 firearm deaths per 100,000 pop
For Hispanics: 7.93 firearm deaths per 100,000 pop

Currently, subtracting the extremely-low officer fatality numbers, it seems civilians, especially black and Hispanic civilians, have more to fear from firearm deaths than police officers by a massive margin. So, GAF. Discuss.

 

[Count Dookkake]

A re-skinned War on Christmas.

 

[Sandfox]

That's a lot lower than I was expecting.

 

[dan2026]

So cops are safe. Shame about the civilians.

 

[NCR Redslayer]

WWI was a rough time.

 

[Enzom21]

But I heard there was a war on police?

 

[akira28]

War on Cops? someone needs to notify fox news that they're misinformed.

Or that they're idiots. useful idiots. Or collaborators whatever. Same thing.

 

[Marauder Shields]

Policing is a dangerous job.

 

[Aurongel]

The war against cops is being fought with cameras and accountability, not guns.

 

[Gordon Shumway]

Thanks to Colbert and his terrorist friends BLM, this year's number will skyrocket..

 

[Walpurgis]

For a country of 300 million people and even more guns, this is not a lot.

 

[JDSN]

Race wars cancelled.

 

[CountAntonius]

Weren't most of the ones making the news execution style murders where people just walked up to cops and shot them and not regular on the job related deaths? Would make sense there would be less police deaths now as violent crime as a whole drops. Though I know the media loves to create new trends but some of these police murders seemed related to the long time abuse of power police have gotten away with.

 

[Numb]

For a country of 300 million people and even more guns, this is not a lot.

Impressive to say the least.

 

[DizzyCrow]

The war against cops is being fought with cameras and accountability, not guns.

.

 

[GavinGT]

So cops are safe. Shame about the civilians.

Despite the daily shooting threads on here, shooting deaths are lower than ever. That goes for California even more so.

 

[Mael]

I don't who's waging a war on cops but they're not efficient or close to winning.

 

[Link]

Sorry, but this doesn't fit the narrative. The police/Fox News will be deleting this thread shortly.

 

[DontBeThatGuy]

The media wants no part of a narrative that is actually backed up by hard data.

 

[Kite]

tbh firearms deaths alone aren't that convincing, I'd like to know if the appearance of guns, knives and all other weapons encountered by cops are down. And the drop in deaths are probably due to new policing procedures and more cops wearing bullet-proof vests. I'm sure policing has changed since the 1970s.

 

[A Fish Aficionado]

 

[LostMyNarbles]

To be fair this should be expected since equipment, training, and medical care has gotten better as the years have come and gone. I mean yeah deaths have gone down, but I'd rather look at other statistics like the amount of injuries in police officers over the years before saying that it isn't as dangerous of a career as people make it seem.

 

[Link]

Despite the daily shooting threads on here, shooting deaths are lower than ever. That goes for California even more so.

Except when cops are doing the shooting:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2015/07/10/there-have-been-500-people-shot-and-killed-by-police-in-the-u-s-so-far-in-2015/

 

[Scrooged]

Social media and and the 24 hour news cycle both amplify things and make them seem more prevalent than they actually are. Happens with just about everything. Seems like people are getting more paranoid these days.

 

[loki 16]

So cops are safe. Shame about the civilians.

This.

 

[Apt101]

Despite being safer and less under threat than they have been, cops are still militarizing and beating and shooting more black men to death than ever before. Oh spacious skies.

 

[Jason's Ultimatum]

Thought about highway patrol, but I dunno. Getting shot at doesn't sound fun.

 

[Big Baybee]

Every cop murdered this year has been a national news story it seems.

 

[TAJ]

Policing is a dangerous job.

Driving is dangerous. Police drive a lot. I don't hear people who deliver food crowing about how they put their lives on the line.

 

[The Faceless Master]

and the nunbers in the OP don't even convey that minority cops are getting shot and killed at a much higher rate.

 

[Shamrock7r]

What's funny is the extreme arming and protocol in dealing with situations has probably been a big factor in lowering police fatalities, but departments look at those stats, and think to themselves "see, we have to arm our police even more". There was probably a sweet spot and many departments have gone overboard.

Make no mistake though, it is a dangerous job, and I can't take anyone seriously who looks at these stats and honestly comes to the conclusion that being a police officer is not dangerous.

 

[Enzom21]

Social media and and the 24 hour news cycle both amplify things and make them seem more prevalent than they actually are. Happens with just about everything. Seems like people are getting more paranoid these days.

I would say it's more cops not liking the additional scrutiny they are under with cameras and cops actually being arrested for crimes they commit. They fabricated the "war on police" for that exact reason.

 

[The Faceless Master]

What's funny is the extreme arming and protocol in dealing with situations has probably been a big factor in lowering police fatalities, but departments look at those stats, and think to themselves "see, we have to arm our police even more". There was probably a sweet spot and many departments have gone overboard.

Make no mistake though, it is a dangerous job, and I can't take anyone seriously who looks at these stats and honestly comes to the conclusion that being a police officer is not dangerous.

it's less dangerous than being a cashier.

 

[Shamrock7r]

it's less dangerous than being a cashier.

In what sense?

 

[androvsky]

WWI was a rough time.

It's crazy how easy it is to see how much traction prohibition had and when it went national based on those numbers.

As for the 1970's, no idea. Leaded gas kicking in? It was before the war on drugs, but after they were popular. Organized crime maybe?

 

[Ol No Bones]

Good news.

 

[The Faceless Master]

In what sense?

the thread title. getting shot and killed.

 

[Shamrock7r]

the thread title. getting shot and killed.

You are being a bit disingenuous. Rate of death is not the only thing that equates to the danger level of a job. The stress levels, mental fatigue, physical danger (based on what area you work in), etc. can take a toll. One of the big problems, imo, is that there isn't good enough checks and balances on the mental health of officers over time.

 

[TheJLC]

Declining thanks to body armor, extra weaponry in the arsenal of police, and changes in training. There are now charities trying to get body armor for every officer in the U.S. The police are now equipped with AR/M-4 type rifles in many departments to counter all kinds of threats. And training has changed to include active shooter, ambushes, and different kinds of threats that police are now facing.

Saying that, the war on police is not about police death stats, but the portrayal of police by the public, media, and politicians. 1 officer could die in the entire year and there would still be a "war on police". Why? because there is an increase in negative reactions towards police due to the sensationalism. I have personally have seen people's ignorance grow toward what police can and cannot do.

 

[Walpurgis]

the thread title. getting shot and killed.

Hahaha! I never thought of it that way. It's safer to be a police officer than to be black in America.

 

[andthebeatgoeson]

Might be one of the best posts I've ever seen. Couldn't have said it better myself.

But over the past 25 years, the tide of crime and violence seemed to simply recede. Crime is about half of what it was at its peak in 1991. Violent crime plummeted 51 percent. Property crime fell 43 percent. Homicides are down 54 percent. In 1985, there were 1,384 murders in New York City. Last year there were 333. The country is an undeniably safer place. Growing urban populations are one positive consequence.

http://www.theatlantic.com/politics...y-causes-of-americas-decline-in-crime/385364/

Guys, go outside. Things are better. Hold the news companies accountable. Don't listen to bs meant to scare you.

I'm personally giving nwa credit. Gangster rap saves cops lives. And blaming Hollywood... from the 1930's. Jazz cigarettes were a terror.

 

[ISOM]

Social media and and the 24 hour news cycle both amplify things and make them seem more prevalent than they actually are. Happens with just about everything. Seems like people are getting more paranoid these days.

Pretty much.

 

[The Faceless Master]

You are being a bit disingenuous. Rate of death is not the only thing that equates to the danger level of a job. The stress levels, mental fatigue, physical danger (based on what area you work in), etc. can take a toll. One of the big problems, imo, is that there isn't good enough checks and balances on the mental health of officers over time.

all of that applies to retail too.

but really, i was just talking about shooting deaths.

you know, the danger this topic is about.

 

[HeySeuss]

You'd almost think that with the steady decline that modern medicine and better safety equipment might have a little to do with it.

Nah.

 

[LookAtMeGo]

People are starting to see the corrupt racist system for what it is, so the media has to get the majority all in a frenzy about this imaginary war against police officers so they will stay mad at black people.

 

[Shamrock7r]

all of that applies to retail too.
.

Absolutely, but I think it's pretty obvious that the the points I mentioned greatly affect police officers to a higher degree than a lot of other jobs.

but really, i was just talking about shooting deaths.

you know, the danger this topic is about

But these statistics usually lead to a conversation about how dangerous a cop's job is from a general viewpoint, so my original post is relevant to the topic.

 

[andthebeatgoeson]

What's funny is the extreme arming and protocol in dealing with situations has probably been a big factor in lowering police fatalities, but departments look at those stats, and think to themselves "see, we have to arm our police even more". There was probably a sweet spot and many departments have gone overboard.

Make no mistake though, it is a dangerous job, and I can't take anyone seriously who looks at these stats and honestly comes to the conclusion that being a police officer is not dangerous.

That first part, you totally made up. Can you back that up? The op is a response to the idea of a war on cops. This contradicts the idea that being a cop is getting more dangerous. You can't move the goal posts when every sheriff is blaming current 'rhetoric'. Fox news is calling BLM a terrorist organization.

Two, no one reasonable is saying cops are not in danger. But too many are trying to shut down protest and conversation by bringing up the 'hero' cop theme.

 

[The Faceless Master]

Declining thanks to body armor, extra weaponry in the arsenal of police, and changes in training. There are now charities trying to get body armor for every officer in the U.S. The police are now equipped with AR/M-4 type rifles in many departments to counter all kinds of threats. And training has changed to include active shooter, ambushes, and different kinds of threats that police are now facing.

Saying that, the war on police is not about police death stats, but the portrayal of police by the public, media, and politicians. 1 officer could die in the entire year and there would still be a "war on police". Why? because there is an increase in negative reactions towards police due to the sensationalism. I have personally have seen people's ignorance grow toward what police can and cannot do.

but that decline matches up to the overall decline in violent crime.. i mean, unless you have some info on failed ambushes and non-fatal police shootings going up or even holding steady...

 

[andthebeatgoeson]

You'd almost think that with the steady decline that modern medicine and better safety equipment might have a little to do with it.

Nah.

So why the spike in the 70's? Did they regress?

 

[Earthstrike]

What makes this more pathetic is that these are just raw numbers, not even adjusted to be on a per capita basis, which makes this whole war on police narrative even weaker.