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Table 23

Full-time Law Enforcement Employees1

by Region and Geographic Division by Population Group

Number and Rate per 1,000 Inhabitants, 2016

Region/geographic division Total
(10,126
cities;
population
192,569,624) 		Group I
(79 cities,
250,000 and
over;
population
59,221,977)		 Group II
(200 cities,
100,000 to
249,999;
population
29,632,582)		 Group III
(433 cities,
50,000 to
99,999;
population
30,220,472)		 Group IV
(773 cities,
25,000 to
49,999;
population
26,885,069)		 Group V
(1,597 cities,
10,000 to
24,999;
population
25,434,997)		 Group VI
(7,044 cities,
under 10,000;
population
21,174,527)		 Total
city
agencies		 2016
estimated
city
population		 County2
(3,091
agencies;
population
85,069,134)		 Total city
and county
agencies		 2016
estimated
total agency
population		 Suburban Areas3
(7,050 agencies;
population
116,271,221)
TOTAL Number of employees 543,105 199,810 63,555 62,534 57,020 57,987 102,199 10,126 192,569,624 390,037 13,217 277,638,758 434,964
Average number of employees per 1,000 inhabitants 2.8 3.4 2.1 2.1 2.1 2.3 4.8 4.6 3.7
NORTHEAST Number of employees 150,352 66,610 8,428 15,399 18,309 18,553 23,053 2,628 45,116,740
Average number of employees per 1,000 inhabitants 3.3 5.6 2.9 2.4 2.2 2.1 3.6
NEW ENGLAND Number of employees 34,056 2,678 4,468 6,281 7,068 6,931 6,630 795 12,871,266
Average number of employees per 1,000 inhabitants 2.6 4.0 3.0 2.3 2.2 2.3 3.8
MIDDLE ATLANTIC Number of employees 116,296 63,932 3,960 9,118 11,241 11,622 16,423 1,833 32,245,474
Average number of employees per 1,000 inhabitants 3.6 5.7 2.9 2.4 2.1 2.0 3.5
MIDWEST Number of employees 94,374 31,832 7,333 11,733 11,890 13,012 18,574 2,537 37,123,846
Average number of employees per 1,000 inhabitants 2.5 3.7 2.0 1.8 1.9 2.0 3.3
EAST NORTH CENTRAL Number of employees 60,559 24,326 3,669 7,089 8,645 7,761 9,069 1,309 23,081,262
Average number of employees per 1,000 inhabitants 2.6 4.0 2.0 1.9 1.9 2.0 3.1
WEST NORTH CENTRAL Number of employees 33,815 7,506 3,664 4,644 3,245 5,251 9,505 1,228 14,042,584
Average number of employees per 1,000 inhabitants 2.4 2.9 2.0 1.7 1.9 2.1 3.6
SOUTH Number of employees 184,239 52,351 27,507 19,997 17,872 19,962 46,550 3,587 57,655,948
Average number of employees per 1,000 inhabitants 3.2 2.9 2.5 2.5 2.5 2.9 6.9
SOUTH ATLANTIC Number of employees 89,129 23,469 12,958 10,855 9,079 9,520 23,248 1,635 24,823,862
Average number of employees per 1,000 inhabitants 3.6 3.7 2.6 2.6 2.7 3.0 8.0
EAST SOUTH CENTRAL Number of employees 25,156 4,093 4,200 2,582 3,111 3,513 7,657 653 7,286,658
Average number of employees per 1,000 inhabitants 3.5 3.1 2.9 2.7 2.6 3.1 6.3
WEST SOUTH CENTRAL Number of employees 69,954 24,789 10,349 6,560 5,682 6,929 15,645 1,299 25,545,428
Average number of employees per 1,000 inhabitants 2.7 2.4 2.2 2.3 2.3 2.6 5.9
WEST Number of employees 114,140 49,017 20,287 15,405 8,949 6,460 14,022 1,374 52,673,090
Average number of employees per 1,000 inhabitants 2.2 2.4 1.7 1.6 1.7 2.0 5.9
MOUNTAIN Number of employees 41,165 15,909 7,076 4,823 3,654 2,473 7,230 614 16,789,215
Average number of employees per 1,000 inhabitants 2.5 2.4 2.0 1.9 1.9 2.3 6.1
PACIFIC Number of employees 72,975 33,108 13,211 10,582 5,295 3,987 6,792 760 35,883,875
Average number of employees per 1,000 inhabitants 2.0 2.3 1.6 1.5 1.6 1.9 5.7
  • 1 Full-time law enforcement employees include civilians.
  • 2 The designation county is a combination of both metropolitan and nonmetropolitan counties.
  • 3 Suburban areas include law enforcement agencies in cities with less than 50,000 inhabitants and county law enforcement agencies that are within a Metropolitan Statistical Area. Suburban areas exclude all metropolitan agencies associated with a principal city. The agencies associated with suburban areas also appear in other groups within this table.

Data Declaration

Provides the methodology used in constructing this table and other pertinent information about this table.

Overview

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Full-time Law Enforcement Employees, by Region and Geographic Division by Population Group, Number and Rate per 1,000 Inhabitants, 2016

  • In 2016, law enforcement agencies in U.S. cities reported an average of 2.8 full-time law enforcement employees (including both sworn officers and civilians) per 1,000 inhabitants.
  • Law enforcement agencies in cities in the Northeast had a rate of 3.3 full-time law enforcement employees per 1,000 inhabitants.
  • The rate of full-time law enforcement employees per 1,000 inhabitants was 3.2 in cities in the South.
  • In cities in the Midwest, the rate of full-time law enforcement employees per 1,000 residents was 2.5.
  • Law enforcement agencies in cities in the West had a rate of 2.2 full-time law enforcement employees per 1,000 inhabitants.