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Home LEOKA 2013 Federal Officers Killed and Assaulted

Federal Officers Killed and Assaulted

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This page provides information regarding federal law enforcement officers who were killed or assaulted in the line of duty in 2013 and who met the appropriate criteria.

Overview

In 2013, 2 officers with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, 1 officer with the U.S. Department of the Interior, and 1 officer with the U.S. Department of Justice were killed in the line of duty. In addition, 1,770 federal law enforcement officers were assaulted. Of these officers, 292 were injured. By department:

  • The U.S. Capitol Police employed 13 officers who were assaulted, and of these, 6 officers were injured.
  • In addition to the 2 officers who were killed in the line of duty, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security employed 588 of the federal officers who were assaulted, and 122 of these officers were injured.
  • In addition to 1 officer who was killed in the line of duty, the U.S. Department of the Interior employed 874 of the officers who were assaulted; 106 of these officers were injured.
  • In addition to 1 officer who was killed in the line of duty, the U.S. Department of Justice employed 292 of the officers who were assaulted, and 58 of these officers were injured.
  • The U.S. Postal Inspection Service employed 3 of the officers who were assaulted in 2013. None of these officers were injured.
  • No U.S. Department of the Treasury officers were assaulted or injured in 2013.

More information about this topic is provided in Tables 91, 92, 93, and 94.

See also the summaries of Assaults by Department.

Weapons

  • 626 federal officers were attacked with personal weapons such as hands, fists, or feet, and 198 of these assaults resulted in injuries to the officers.
  • 198 officers were attacked with blunt instruments resulting in 10 officers being injured.
  • 121 federal officers were assaulted with vehicles; of these, 17 officers suffered injuries.
  • 88 officers were assaulted with firearms resulting in 2 officers being killed and 10 officers being injured.
  • 27 officers were assaulted with knives or other cutting instruments resulting in 1 officer being killed and 4 officers being injured.
  • 1 officer was involved in a bomb-related incident but was not injured.
  • 713 officers were assaulted with various other types of weapons resulting in 1 officer being killed and 53 officers being injured.

More information about this topic is provided in Tables 94, 95, 96, and 97.

Type of activity

  • 644 of the federal officers assaulted in 2013 were on patrol or guard duty when they were assaulted.
  • 499 officers were assaulted while attempting arrests or serving summonses.
  • 473 officers were attacked while conducting investigations or searches.
  • 67 officers were assaulted while maintaining custody of prisoners.
  • 30 officers were assaulted while on court duty.
  • 4 officers were on protection duty at the time of the attacks.
  • 4 officers were assigned to office duty when they were assaulted.
  • 53 officers were assigned to other duties when assaulted.

More information about this topic is provided in Table 98.

Regional and outlying area breakdowns

Of the federal law enforcement officers who were killed and assaulted in 2013:

  • 655 officers were in the West.
  • 536 officers were in the Midwest.
  • 500 officers were in the South.
  • 58 officers were in the Northeast.
  • 7 officers were in Puerto Rico.
  • 3 officers were in Guam.
  • 1 officer was in the U.S. Virgin Islands.
  • 12 officers were in Panama.
  • 1 officer was in Colombia.
  • 1 officer was in Mexico.

More information about this topic is provided in Table 96.

Dispositional information

  • 1,177 alleged assailants were identified in connection with the 1,774 attacks on federal officers.
  • Of the 1,177 offenders, dispositional information was reported for 758 of them.
  • At the time of this report, the following dispositional information was available for 758 of the suspects:
    • 509 were found guilty, and 4 were found not guilty or the charges were dismissed.
    • 166 of the offenders were awaiting trial.
    • 34 offenders’ cases were pending prosecutive opinion.
    • 31 offenders’ prosecutions were declined.
    • 7 offenders are deceased.
    • 4 offenders were found incompetent to stand trial.
    • 3 offenders remained fugitives.

More information about this topic is provided in Tables 91 and 99.

Five-year totals

From 2009 through 2013, there were 9,014 federal officers assaulted; 10 of these officers were killed.

  • In the last five years, 5 officers employed by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security have been killed in the line of duty. Of these officers:
    • 4 officers were employed by the U.S. Customs and Border Protection. One of these officers was killed in 2009, another in 2010, and 2 officers were killed in 2013.
    • 1 officer with the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement was killed in 2011.
  • Of the other 5 officers killed over the last five years:
    • 2 officers were with the U.S. Department of the Interior. One officer employed by the National Park Service was killed in 2012, and 1 officer with the Bureau of Indian Affairs was killed in 2013.
    • 3 officers were with the U.S. Department of Justice. Two officers employed by the U.S. Marshals Service were killed in 2011, and 1 officer with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration was killed in 2013.

More information about this topic is provided in Tables 93, 94, and 95.