New FBI data released Monday says 66 law enforcement officers were killed at the hands of lawbreakers last year, up from 41 in 2015.
Total law enforcement deaths were 118 last year, a number that includes 52 accidental deaths. In the prior year, 2015, there were 45 accidental deaths.
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The Law Enforcement Officers Killed and Assaulted report found that 57,180 officers were assaulted in the line of duty, and nearly 30 percent of those officers were injured in the incidents. The number of total assaults was up from jump from the roughly 50,212 assaults in the 2015 report.
The report reveals that the most common circumstances surrounding line-of-duty deaths for officers were ambushes (17), and nearly all were killed by firearms — 62 out of 66.
According to the FBI, the LEOKA report is used to bolster law enforcement safety.
Attorney General Jeff Sessions has been a vocal supporter of law enforcement throughout his tenure as the nation’s top cop in various speeches and through department initiatives.
Sessions said Monday that the new data “are shocking as they are unacceptable.”
“Our law enforcement deserves the support of the people they serve. Fortunately we have a president who understands this. President Trump ran for office as a law-and-order candidate; now he is governing as a law-and-order President,” Sessions said in a statement.
Earlier this month, the Department of Justice rolled out a new initiative to support law enforcement’s efforts to fight violent crime.
Trump also signed an executive order in February promising a crackdown on violence against law enforcement.
