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Table 71

Full-time Law Enforcement Officers

by Region and Geographic Division by Population Group

Number and Rate per 1,000 Inhabitants, 2019

Region/geographic division Total
(10,247
cities;
population
196,900,226) 		Group I
(85 cities,
250,000 and
over;
population
62,520,440)		 Group II
(207 cities,
100,000 to
249,999;
population
30,396,345)		 Group III
(427 cities,
50,000 to
99,999;
population
29,799,314)		 Group IV
(788 cities,
25,000 to
49,999;
population
27,147,744)		 Group V
(1,644 cities,
10,000 to
24,999;
population
26,146,921)		 Group VI
(7,096 cities,
under 10,000;
population
20,889,462)		 Total
city
agencies		 2019
estimated
city
population		 County1
(3,000
agencies;
population
91,457,371)		 Total city
and county
agencies		 2019
estimated
total agency
population		 Suburban Areas2
(7,079 agencies;
population
123,692,820)
TOTAL Number of officers 443,173 160,606 49,987 48,113 46,485 49,861 88,121 10,247 196,900,226 254,022 13,247 288,357,597 307,028
Average number of officers per 1,000 inhabitants 2.3 2.6 1.6 1.6 1.7 1.9 4.2 2.8 2.5
NORTHEAST Number of officers 125,176 49,224 6,853 12,975 15,848 16,006 24,270 2,526 44,387,838
Average number of officers per 1,000 inhabitants 2.8 4.2 2.5 2.0 1.9 1.8 3.9
NEW ENGLAND Number of officers 27,416 2,143 3,488 5,210 6,089 5,708 4,778 781 12,741,851
Average number of officers per 1,000 inhabitants 2.2 3.1 2.5 2.0 1.9 1.9 2.8
MIDDLE ATLANTIC Number of officers 97,760 47,081 3,365 7,765 9,759 10,298 19,492 1,745 31,645,987
Average number of officers per 1,000 inhabitants 3.1 4.3 2.5 2.1 1.8 1.8 4.3
MIDWEST Number of officers 86,159 29,721 6,763 10,395 9,843 11,972 17,465 2,679 39,233,426
Average number of officers per 1,000 inhabitants 2.2 3.3 1.6 1.5 1.5 1.7 3.0
EAST NORTH CENTRAL Number of officers 57,919 23,850 3,713 6,642 7,108 7,335 9,271 1,446 24,836,151
Average number of officers per 1,000 inhabitants 2.3 3.8 1.7 1.6 1.6 1.7 2.9
WEST NORTH CENTRAL Number of officers 28,240 5,871 3,050 3,753 2,735 4,637 8,194 1,233 14,397,275
Average number of officers per 1,000 inhabitants 2.0 2.2 1.6 1.4 1.5 1.7 3.2
SOUTH Number of officers 147,357 43,069 22,183 14,216 14,559 16,816 36,514 3,659 59,614,470
Average number of officers per 1,000 inhabitants 2.5 2.2 1.9 1.9 2.0 2.3 5.5
SOUTH ATLANTIC Number of officers 68,818 17,371 10,275 8,529 7,370 7,712 17,561 1,582 25,223,887
Average number of officers per 1,000 inhabitants 2.7 2.6 2.0 2.0 2.1 2.5 6.3
EAST SOUTH CENTRAL Number of officers 26,143 5,263 3,897 1,730 3,341 3,517 8,395 852 9,391,674
Average number of officers per 1,000 inhabitants 2.8 2.2 2.4 2.1 2.2 2.5 5.1
WEST SOUTH CENTRAL Number of officers 52,396 20,435 8,011 3,957 3,848 5,587 10,558 1,225 24,998,909
Average number of officers per 1,000 inhabitants 2.1 1.9 1.6 1.7 1.8 2.1 4.6
WEST Number of officers 84,481 38,592 14,188 10,527 6,235 5,067 9,872 1,383 53,664,492
Average number of officers per 1,000 inhabitants 1.6 1.7 1.2 1.2 1.2 1.5 4.5
MOUNTAIN Number of officers 30,238 13,341 4,272 3,245 2,414 1,843 5,123 612 17,181,579
Average number of officers per 1,000 inhabitants 1.8 1.7 1.5 1.3 1.3 1.7 4.6
PACIFIC Number of officers 54,243 25,251 9,916 7,282 3,821 3,224 4,749 771 36,482,913
Average number of officers per 1,000 inhabitants 1.5 1.8 1.1 1.1 1.2 1.4 4.3
  • 1 The designation county is a combination of both metropolitan and nonmetropolitan counties.
  • 2 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 Officers, by Region and Geographic Division by Population Group, Number, and Rate per 1,000 Inhabitants, 2019

  • In 2019, the average number of full-time law enforcement officers in the nation’s cities was 2.3 per 1,000 residents.
  • Law enforcement agencies in cities in the Northeast had a rate of 2.8 full-time law enforcement officers per 1,000 inhabitants.
  • In cities in the South, the rate of full-time law enforcement officers per 1,000 residents was 2.5.
  • The rate of full-time law enforcement officers per 1,000 inhabitants was 2.2 in cities in the Midwest.
  • Law enforcement agencies in cities in the West had a rate of 1.6 full-time law enforcement officers per 1,000 inhabitants.