Shootings of police have jumped 73 percent this year, prompting passage Wednesday in a key House committee of legislation to tackle those who target police, such as the violent MS-13 street gang that has called for “assassinations” of New York cops.
According to the Fraternal Order of Police, there have been 87 shootings of police so far this year. Of those, 28 died.
For comparison, 46 police died in shootings in all of 2017, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page.
The Protect and Serve Act unanimously passed @HouseJudiciary today! Thank you to @RepValDemings for your leadership on this important issue. Thank you to @GLFOP for your support and to all the other great groups who have endorsed the #ProtectAndServeAct! https://t.co/C32dHdJBNE
— Rep. John Rutherford (@RepRutherfordFL) May 9, 2018
On Wednesday, the bipartisan Protect and Serve act passed in the House Judiciary Committee. The national Fraternal Order of Police urged House Speaker Paul Ryan and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi to push for full House passage next week, which is National Police Week.
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82 officers shot so far in 2018. 26 have been killed in the line of duty by firearms. That is a 73% increase from this time last year #EnoughisEnough pic.twitter.com/JqEUgGK4V8
— National FOP (@GLFOP) May 1, 2018
In a letter to the leaders, FOP National President Chuck Canterbury noted the recent killing of two Florida officers as they ate lunch. “Similarly,” he added, “the violent transnational criminal organization MS-13 called for the assassinations of police officers in New York so the gang could ‘take back the streets’ — a move clearly intended to intimidate the men and women in uniform.”
The FBI has reported that cop-killers believe that they won’t face harsh punishment because they see weak support among communities and lawmakers for police, said the FOP. “We must change this perspective and we believe the Protect and Serve Act will do just that,” wrote Canterbury.
