Official websites use .gov

A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS

A lock () or https:// means you've safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Home LEOKA 2017 Tables Table 66

Table 66

Law Enforcement Officers Accidentally Killed

Type of Accident by Type of Assignment, 2017

Circumstance Total Two-officer
patrol
One-
officer
patrol
Investigative/
detective
Tactical
assignment
(uniformed)
Plainclothes
assignment
Special
assignment
Undercover Court/
prisoner
security
Other1 Off
duty
Alone Assisted Alone Assisted Alone Assisted Alone Assisted Alone Assisted Alone Assisted Alone Assisted Alone Assisted
Number of victim officers Total 47 3 22 7 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 6 0 0 0 0 3 1 3
Aircraft crash Total 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Equipment failure or malfunction 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Pilot error 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Inconclusive after investigation, ongoing investigation, etc. 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Drowning Total 3 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Safety equipment used (flotation
device, scuba equipment, etc.)
2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
No safety equipment used 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Safety equipment usage not reported 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Fall Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Safety equipment used (fall
protection/harness, helmet, etc.)
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
No safety equipment used 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Safety equipment usage not reported 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Firearm-related incident Total 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Accidental discharge while
cleaning weapon
0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Crossfire 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Mistaken for offender 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Training mishap 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other accidental discharge 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Motor vehicle crash
(car/truck/SUV/van)
Total 29 2 18 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 1 1
Wearing seatbelt 12 1 8 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
Not wearing seatbelt 2 15 0 9 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 1
Seatbelt usage not reported 2 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Motor vehicle crash
(ATV/motorcycle)
Total 5 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
Wearing helmet 5 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
Not wearing helmet 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Helmet usage not reported 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Motor vehicle crash
(watercraft)
Total 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Pedestrian officer struck
by vehicle
Total 6 1 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1
Wearing high visibility clothing 2 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Not wearing high visibility clothing 3 4 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1
High visibility clothing not reported 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Other accidental Total 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
  • 1Includes officers on overtime/extra duty activities and other types of assignments not listed.
  • 2Of the 15 victim officers who were fatally injured in motor vehicle crashes and were not wearing seatbelts, 2 were seated in parked motor vehicles at the time of the accident.
  • 3The lighting conditions were dark at the time 3 of the 4 victim officers who were not wearing high visibility clothing were fatally struck by vehicles.