Preliminary data shows 4 percent decrease in firearms-related fatalities. COVID-19 crisis poised to cause law enforcement deaths to skyrocket. Expert available for live or taped interviews.
Washington —The National Law Enforcement Memorial and Museum will issue its annual Mid-Year Fatality Report on Tuesday, July 14, 2020, that will detail preliminary data related to law enforcement officer fatalities thus far in 2020.
Preliminary data through June 30, 2020, reveals that 65 federal, state, tribal, and local law enforcement officers have been killed in the line of duty in 2020 — a 14 percent decrease over the same period last year (76). Firearms-related fatalities were the leading cause of law enforcement deaths for the first half of this year, with 27 fatalities in 2020, compared to 28 in the same period in 2019—a decrease of 4 percent.
Thus far, five law enforcement line-of-duty deaths due to COVID-19 have been confirmed; however, another 53 cases are pending. Once confirmed, this could push total law enforcement deaths for the first half of the year to 118, a 55 percent increase over last year’s Mid-year Fatality report. This would make COVID-19 related fatalities the single highest cause of law enforcement deaths occuring in the first six months of 2020.
The above are among the many findings in the National Law Enforcement Memorial and Museum’s 2020 Mid-Year Fatality Report on line-of-duty deaths that will be released on Tuesday, July 14, 2020.
| WHAT: | Law Enforcement Officer Fatality Report providing preliminary officer fatality mid-year data for 2020 (through June 30, 2020). The report will be available online at LawMemorial.org/FatalitiesReport. |
| WHEN: | Tuesday, July 14 at 3:30 am |
| WHO: | Marcia Ferranto, CEO of the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, is available for live or taped interviews to discuss the report and provide insight. |
To schedule an interview, contact Robyn Small, Senior Director of Marketing and Media Relations at (202) 737-8524, or via email at [email protected].
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About the National Law Enforcement Memorial and Museum
Established in 1984, the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund is a non-profit organization dedicated to telling the story of American law enforcement and making it safer for those who serve. The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial contains the names of 22,217 officers who have died in the line of duty throughout U.S. history. For more information about the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial, visit LawMemorial.org. Authorized by Congress in 2000, the 57,000-square-foot National Law Enforcement Museum at the Motorola Solutions Foundation Building tells the story of American law enforcement by providing visitors a “walk in the shoes” experience along with educational journeys, immersive exhibitions, and insightful programs. The Museum is an initiative of the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, a 501(c)(3) organization. For more information on the Law Enforcement Museum, visit LawEnforcementMuseum.org.
Robyn Small
[email protected]
(202) 737-8524