It got statistically safer to be a cop in 2015 than the year prior, according to new data released by the FBI.
The FBI released its final number of police officers killed in 2015, which matched the preliminary data released in May.
Recommended Stories
For all of 2015, 41 law enforcement officers were killed as a result of attacks — 10 fewer than were killed in 2014. Forty-five officers died as a result of accidents in 2015.
The long-term trends shows even more good news for law enforcement: The 5- and 10-year comparisons show a decrease of 31 killings compared with the 2011 figure (72 officers) and a decrease of seven compared with 2006 data (48 officers).
There did, however, seem to be an uptick in assaults against police. The FBI said 50,212 police officers were assaulted while on duty in 2015, and 28 percent were injured. The FBI doesn’t compare it to years prior, but previously released data show that law enforcement agencies reported that 48,315 officers were assaulted while performing their duties in 2014.
The data collected by the FBI as part of the Law Enforcement Officers Killed and Assaulted report come from county, state and city agencies, as well as nonprofits.
With less than three months until the end of 2016, data show there may be an increase in police deaths compared to last year. According to the Officer Down Memorial Page, 45 officers were killed by gunfire in 2016 and 10 more were killed by vehicular assaults.
Despite the uptick in violence against police officers, the Bureau of Labor Statistics still does not list the job in its top 10 most dangerous jobs.
