In a groundbreaking article released on Sunday, the Washington Post reported the findings of a five-month study showing that from January through May 2015, at least 385 people were shot and killed by on-duty police officers in the U.S. The rate of killings, more than two per day, is also more than twice the rate reported by the FBI in the last decade. In addition to the possibility of a spike in police killings, the Post points to the lack of accuracy in past reporting for the disparity. The article also mentions that the FBI itself is aware that its numbers are incomplete, particularly because these statistics are voluntarily submitted by police departments.

Other studies, including a project by the Guardian called The Counted, also reveal the incredible rate of uncounted police shootings. In a period of public outcry over police brutality, it is no coincidence that this issue is finally being addressed. By not requiring accurate statistics to be maintained, the government is only reinforcing public fears of a lack of police accountability. Understanding the extent of this problem is the first step toward being able to properly discuss and analyze it.

The Post study also found some troubling patterns in these shootings. Nearly a quarter of the victims were identified by police or family members as mentally ill. Among the cases identified by the Post, 16 percent of the victims were either unarmed or were carrying toy weapons. Both the the Post and the Guardian investigations highlight the disproportionate killings of blacks and Hispanics, particularly in shootings with unarmed victims. Police treatment of mentally ill suspects and minorities have become a widespread issue on which these studies begin to provide insight.

Although these reports sparked some public outrage, it is important to remember the big picture. More than 80 percent of those killed by police were armed with potentially lethal objects, which likely makes police action justified in many situations.

Police shootings are a complex and nuanced issue. Comparisons between the United States and other nations are not incredibly informative given the vast differences in weapon ownership, crime, and various other characteristics. Furthermore, the demonization of police officers to which some citizens resort, is neither reasonable nor helpful in dealing with this issue. Nevertheless, limiting police shootings is certainly a laudable goal, and gathering accurate data is the best place to start.

Let us not forget the harmful consequences that officer-involved shootings can have on police departments and individual officers. Police officers face the damage–particularly emotional damage–that can be inflicted when they are compelled to use deadly force. Moreover, the divide that such events creates between law enforcement and their communities can be detrimental to their ability to function. Unnecessary police shootings are a losing situation for all sides and must be addressed by law enforcement.

One issue that relates directly to these shootings is police officer training. This issue was addressed from a unique perspective in an article on Police One by Roy Bedard, a close quarters and field tactics specialist who trains police, corrections officers, and military professionals. He cites his own rookie officer training and the training that most new officers receive on handgun use. Officers are trained to fire for the center of mass in order to “shoot to stop,” yet Bedard comments on how “shoot to stop” and “shoot to kill” become synonymous in practice.  With this training, it is no surprise that rough encounters with police have resulted in so many deaths.

It would be foolish to blame police shootings solely on training and decisions made by police officers. In high-intensity situations with civilian lives on the line, as well as their own, police officers must quickly determine the best course of action for all involved. Sometimes this means shooting suspects. Sometimes these shootings save lives and that must not be forgotten. Nevertheless, it is important for police departments to train their officers to use deadly force as sparingly as possible. Many of the cases cited by the Washington Post, as well as several recent high-profile police shootings, point to officers using unnecessary force, which is troubling.

On Tuesday, following growing publicity of these reports, two senators announced their plan to introduce legislation that would require states to report all police-related deaths to the Justice Department. This bill, proposed by Senators Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and Cory Booker (D-N.J.) would require all details of these cases to be reported, including age, race, sex, and the situation surrounding the shooting. With more accurate information, law enforcement will be able to understand the true scope of police shootings and take any necessary steps to reduce them.

Maurin Mwombela

Maurin Mwombela is a member of the University of Pennsylvania class of 2017 and was a Law Street Media Fellow for the Summer 2015. He now blogs for Law Street, focusing on politics. Contact Maurin at staff@LawStreetMedia.com.

The post The Number of Americans Killed By Police is Much Higher Than You Think appeared first on Law Street.

The number of police officers in the United States has increased significantly over the last several decades, according to a Bureau of Justice Statistics report released last week. Local police departments are also becoming more diverse, as women and minorities continue to make up a larger share of forces.

The report provides an interesting snapshot of American police in 2013, highlighting some notable trends that have occurred over the last 26 years. In addition to becoming more diverse, the number of sworn police officers has also steadily increased. Since 1987, the number of sworn police officers has gone up by approximately 35 percent, with a total of 477,000 officers in 2013.

Another interesting finding in the BJS report is that the most American police officers work in cities with large populations. Only three percent of local police departments serve populations greater than 100,000, but these departments employ 54 percent of all sworn officers. In fact, many police departments in the United States are very small. Nearly half (48 percent) of the 12,326 local police departments have fewer than ten sworn officers.

The racial diversity among officers has become a very important issue in light of the growing tensions between minority communities and the police, which was highlighted in the Justice Department’s review of the Ferguson Police Department.

The recent BJS report indicates that ethnic and racial minorities are increasingly being represented in local police departments. Roughly 27 percent of all full-time police officers were members of a racial or ethnic minority in 2013. In contrast, the number of minority police officers was less than 15 percent in 1987. The chart below details the growth in minority police officers over time based on BJS surveys.

Police departments serving cities with large populations tend to be much more diverse than those in small towns. As you can see in the chart below, nearly three-quarters of all police officers are white, but as the size of a police department’s jurisdiction increases that number goes down considerably. While the composition of larger police departments tends to be more representative of the populations that they serve, this remains an issue for many departments, particularly those in smaller cities. For example, at the time Michael Brown’s death last summer, 50 of the 54 police officers in Ferguson, Missouri were white, yet 65 percent of the city’s residents were black.

The BJS data further indicates that more and more women are joining the ranks. As of 2013, one in eight police officers and one in ten first-line supervisors were female. The total number of female police officers has increased by roughly two percent since 2007, the last time that this data was collected. Much like racial diversity, larger police forces typically have a significantly higher proportion of female officers relative to smaller departments. According to the report, “the percentage of female first-line supervisors was more than twice as high in departments serving 250,000 or more residents (15 percent), compared to departments serving fewer than 50,000 residents (six percent).”

The percentage of women serving in supervisory positions was lower than the percentage of female police officers in all population groupings. In total, women make up 12.2 percent of the American police force and 9.5 percent of those serving in supervisory positions. This survey marked the first time that data on female representation in supervisory and managerial positions was collected so historical data is not available for comparison.

The findings from this report indicate the extent to which diversity has increased in police departments in recent decades, as well as the overall growth in the number of police officers in America. While there have been significant improvements in overall police diversity, there remain several significant gaps among individual police departments. Although larger police departments tend to be much more diverse than smaller ones, many departments are still much more white than the populations that they serve. Having greater racial parity between police and the residents that they interact with may be a important step toward improving community relations. The recent growth in diversity marks one step toward better representation, yet in cities like Ferguson, Missouri, there is still a long way to go.

Kevin Rizzo

Kevin Rizzo is the Crime in America Editor at Law Street Media. An Ohio Native, the George Washington University graduate is a founding member of the company. Contact Kevin at krizzo@LawStreetMedia.com.

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