In 2024, 144 Officers Were Killed In The Line Of Duty. 49 Of Them By Gunfire

Across the country on January 9th each year, citizens take the lead to show support on National Law Enforcement Appreciation Day.

• 1800s – In the mid-1800s, most law enforcement was carried out in the form of posse comitatus, where the sheriff and a posse of volunteers and deputies (much like the stereotypical Westerns of the 1960s) would enforce laws rather than a centralized police force.
• 1844 – New York City was the first American city to establish a municipal police force. Soon after, Boston, New Orleans, Cincinnati, Philadelphia, Chicago and more followed suit.
• 1857 – Once again, New York led the way in 1857, adopting the first detective unit across the pond. More cities followed suit and then followed suit again after New York City disbanded its detective unit due to corruption.
• 1905 – Pennsylvania becomes the first state to establish a state police force, as recommended by Theodore Roosevelt to help control the numerous labor riots going on in the state’s hill country.
• 1920s – Berkeley, California’s police force gets ahead of the curve in the 1920’s, by adopting centralized and consistent training, communications, and order throughout its police force.
• 1920s – were the deadliest decade in law enforcement history, when a total of 2,480 officers died, or an average of almost 248 each year.
• 1930 – The deadliest year in law enforcement history was 1930, when 310 officers were killed.
• 1990 – That figure dropped dramatically in the 1990s, to an average of 162 per year.
• 2001 – The deadliest day in law enforcement history was September 11, 2001, when 72 officers were killed while responding to the terrorist attacks on America.
• 2013 – 626,942 – The lowest number of law enforcement officers
• 2014 – Law Enforcement Appreciation Day was sparked by the events of 2014 by an officer-involved shooting in Ferguson, Missouri.
• 2015 – Several organizations came together to create National Law Enforcement Appreciation Day in 2015 to thank officers across the country for all the daily sacrifices they make for their communities.
• 2018 – There were 158 law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty.
• 2021 – There have been 43,649 assaults against law enforcement officers (this includes federal, state, and local agencies) in 2021, resulting in 15,369 injuries.
• 2024 – 144 officers were killed in the line of duty. 49 by gunfire
• Law Enforcement Officers of every rank and file have chosen a profession that puts their life on the line every day for their communities.  They’ve answered a call to public service that is demanding and often unappreciated.
• One of the main organizations, Concerns of Police Survivors, encourages citizens to thank their police officers on this day in support of their services.
• 307 police officers died in the line of duty in 2020.
• ⅓ – The amount of a police officer’s time that is spent on enforcing criminal law
• 9 –  The number of female police officers were killed in the line of duty in 2017
• 2.5 million strong…The number of residents across the nation who celebrated National Night Out, an annual party with citizens and local law enforcement.
• There are more than 900,000 sworn law enforcement officers now serving in the United States, which is the highest figure ever. About 12 percent of those are female
• Crime fighting has taken its toll. Since the first recorded police death in 1786, there have been over 21,000 law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty. Currently, there are 21,910 names engraved on the walls of the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial.
• A total of 1,582 law enforcement officers died in the line of duty during the past 10 years, an average of one death every 55 hours or 158 per year.
• The New York City Police Department has lost more officers in the line of duty than any other department, with 941 deaths. Texas has lost 1,772 officers, more than any other state. The state with the fewest deaths is Vermont, with 24.
• There are 1,299 federal officers listed on the Memorial, as well as 928 correctional officers and 55 military law enforcement officers.
• There are 472 female officers listed on the Memorial; 18 female officers were killed in 2022.
• In Thailand, police officers are sometimes forced to wear Hello Kitty armbands for violations like showing up late to work.
• Of the law enforcement officers serving in the U.S., approximately 108,000 of them are female.
• As a result of the Covid-19 pandemic that plagued the world in 2020, 417 officers died in 2020 (258 Covid-19-related) and an astonishing 623 officers were killed in 2021 (436 Covid-19-related).

Sources:

National Day Calendar

Days of the Year

National Today

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