Law Enforcement Officers Killed and Assaulted, 2002/Section I — Law Enforcement Officers Accidentally Killed

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Law Enforcement Officers Killed and Assaulted, 2002
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Section I — Law Enforcement Officers Accidentally Killed
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1926537Law Enforcement Officers Killed and Assaulted, 2002 — Section I — Law Enforcement Officers Accidentally KilledFederal Bureau of Investigation
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Section I — Law Enforcement Officers Accidentally Killed

Methodology

This section contains data regarding accidental deaths of duly sworn local, state, and federal law enforcement officers who met the same criteria as the officers who were feloniously killed. The officers were working in an official capacity, had full arrest powers, were wearing a badge (ordinarily), carried a firearm (ordinarily), and were paid from governmental funds set aside specifically for payment of sworn law enforcement representatives.

Overview

According to data reported by local, state, and federal law enforcement agencies, 77 law enforcement officers were accidentally killed while acting in official capacities in 2002. These officers' deaths occurred in 32 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico. City police departments employed 29 of the victim officers; county police and sheriff's offices employed 24 officers; state agencies employed 14 of the officers; federal agencies employed 8; and Puerto Rico employed 2 of the victim officers. (See Table 53.) Seventy-three separate incidents, including one that occurred in 1999 and another that occurred in 2001, claimed the lives of the 77 officers. The 77 officers killed in accidents in 2002 was one fewer than the 78 accidental deaths reported in 2001. A comparison of the data from 5 and 10 years ago showed that the number of officers killed in 2002 was 5 fewer than the 82 accidentally killed in 1998 and 18 more than the 59 accidentally killed in 1993. (Based on Table 44.)

Victims

The average age of the 77 law enforcement officers accidentally killed in 2002 was 39. According to data provided to the national Program, 5 victim officers were under the age of 25, and 13 officers were from 25 to 30 years of age. Twenty-nine officers were from 31 to 40 years of age, and 29 officers were 40 years of age or older. The age of 1 of the victim officers was not available. By race, 71 of the officers accidentally killed were white, 2 were black, and 2 were American Indian/Alaskan Native. Race was not available for 2 victim officers. (See Tables 48 and 49.)

Collectively, officers accidentally killed in 2002 had an average of 10 years of law enforcement service. Four officers had less than 1 year of service, 20 officers had from 1 to 4 years of service, 21 officers had from 5 to 10 years of experience, and 31 officers had served over 10 years. Law enforcement experience was not reported for 1 victim. (See Table 50.)

Circumstances Surrounding Deaths

The data collected about the circumstances surrounding officers' accidental deaths revealed that the largest number of officers (42) were killed in automobile accidents, 12 were struck by vehicles, 7 died in motorcycle accidents, and 6 were killed in aircraft accidents. Three officers were accidentally shot, and 7 died in other accidental situations. (See Table 53.)

In the 10-year period, 1993 through 2002, 55.9 percent of the victim officers were killed in automobile accidents and 16.3 percent were struck by vehicles. Additionally, 8.5 percent of the victim officers were involved in aircraft accidents and 7.2 percent were fatally injured in motorcycle accidents. Data also showed that 4.3 percent of the victim officers were accidentally shot, and 7.8 percent of the deaths involved other accidental situations. (Based on Table 52.)

Places

Of the 77 accidental deaths reported to the national UCR Program in 2002, 40 occurred in the South. Twenty line-of-duty deaths occurred in the West, 10 in the Midwest, and 5 in the Northeast. Two victim officers were killed in accidents in Puerto Rico.

From 1993 through 2002, law enforcement agencies in the South reported 325 accidental deaths, agencies in the West reported 149, those in the Midwest recorded 124, and agencies in the Northeast reported 63 officer deaths. Law enforcement agencies in the U.S. Territories reported 20 officer deaths during this 10-year period. (See Table 44.)

Times

During 2002, the greatest number of fatal injuries (11) occurred during the hours of 12:01 p.m. to 2 p.m. The fewest number of injuries resulting in officers' accidental deaths (2) in 2002 occurred from 4:01 a.m. to 6 a.m. The time of the incident regarding the accidental death of 1 victim officer was not available. In 2002, 63.2 percent of accidental officer deaths occurred from 12:01 p.m. to midnight. (See Table 45.)

During the past decade, the majority of officers killed in accidents (11.7 percent) were injured during the hours of 10:01 p.m. to midnight. The fewest officers (6.2 percent) were fatally injured within the time frames of 4:01 a.m. to 6 a.m. and 6:01 a.m. to 8 a.m. From 1993 to 2002, 53.1 percent of the incidents in which victim officers were accidentally killed or fatally injured occurred from 12:01 p.m. to midnight. (Based on Table 45.)

A breakdown of the 2002 data by day of the week showed that more officers (23) received fatal injuries due to accidental situations on Wednesday than on any other day of week. The fewest officers, 5, were injured on ​Sunday. Similarly, during the 10-year span of 1993 to 2002, the majority of officers (109) were fatally injured on Wednesday, and the fewest officers (77) received fatal injuries on Sunday. (See Table 46.)

A review of the 2002 data by month revealed that 10 victim officers were fatally injured in June, which had more officers killed accidentally than any other month. No officers suffered fatal injuries in accidents in April. During the 10-year period 1993 to 2002, more officers (71) were involved in fatal accidents in October than in any other month. Over the same time frame, the fewest number (38) of officers were fatally injured in April. (See Table 47.)


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Table 44
Law Enforcement Officers Accidentally Killed
Region, Geographic Division, and State, 1993-2002
Area Total 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002
Total 681 59 62 59 52 63 62 65 84 78 77
NORTHEAST 63 3 5 8 7 8 3 6 13 5 5
New England 20 0 1 5 1 2 1 2 6 2 0
Connecticut 3 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 0
Maine 3 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 0 0
Massachusetts 11 0 0 4 0 1 0 1 4 1 0
New Hampshire 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Rhode Island 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0
Vermont 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Middle Atlantic 43 3 4 3 6 6 2 4 7 3 5
New Jersey 11 2 0 1 1 2 0 2 1 1 1
New York 20 1 3 1 3 2 2 1 4 0 3
Pennsylvania 12 0 1 1 2 2 0 1 2 2 1
MIDWEST 124 16 14 11 6 14 9 11 20 13 10
East North Central 81 9 12 7 3 10 8 5 15 8 4
Illinois 15 3 1 1 0 5 0 0 3 0 2
Indiana 19 1 2 0 1 2 3 3 3 3 l
Michigan 17 1 4 3 1 1 0 2 4 1 0
Ohio 18 0 4 3 1 1 2 0 2 4 1
Wisconsin 12 4 1 0 0 1 3 0 3 0 0
West North Central 43 7 2 4 3 4 1 6 5 5 6
Iowa 4 3 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0
Kansas 7 1 0 3 0 0 0 0 3 0 0
Minnesota 7 1 0 0 1 0 0 2 1 0 2
Missouri 21 2 2 1 1 3 1 2 0 5 4
Nebraska 3 0 0 0 1 0 0 2 0 0 0
North Dakota 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
South Dakota l 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
SOUTH 325 26 30 31 23 23 41 36 35 40 40
South Atlantic 152 14 17 14 12 6 18 18 16 16 21
Delaware 3 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 1 0
District of Columbia 5 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 1
Florida 42 5 3 6 0 4 6 7 2 7 2
Georgia 23 3 5 0 3 1 3 2 4 0 2
Maryland 16 1 2 1 1 0 3 0 5 0 3
North Carolina 29 3 2 3 1 1 2 3 2 6 6
South Carolina 17 1 2 1 2 0 1 3 2 0 5
Virginia 12 1 1 2 1 0 2 2 0 1 2
West Virginia 5 0 1 0 1 0 0 1 1 1 0 ​
East South Central 61 4 3 6 5 5 5 8 9 9 7
Alabama 16 2 0 4 2 1 1 2 0 2 2
Kentucky 6 0 0 0 1 1 1 0 1 0 2
Mississippi 13 2 2 1 0 1 1 1 2 2 1
Tennessee 26 0 1 1 2 2 2 5 6 5 2
West South Central 112 8 10 11 6 12 18 10 10 15 12
Arkansas 15 1 0 0 1 0 3 7 0 1 1
Louisiana 1 2 2 4 2 4 6 4 1 1 1
Oklahoma 11 0 0 2 0 1 3 1 2 1 1
Texas 59 6 8 6 2 6 4 3 3 12 9
WEST 149 11 13 9 12 16 23 11 15 19 20
Mountain 55 4 6 3 2 5 9 3 5 9 9
Arizona 18 2 2 1 0 0 5 2 2 1 3
Colorado 8 1 0 0 1 1 0 1 1 2 1
Idaho 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Montana 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1
Nevada 7 0 0 0 1 2 2 0 0 1 1
New Mexico 7 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 4 2
Utah 9 0 2 1 0 1 1 0 2 1 1
Wyoming 4 1 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
Pacifc 94 7 7 6 10 11 14 8 10 10 11
Alaska 5 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 2
California 65 4 5 4 9 7 12 4 9 5 6
Hawaii 5 0 0 2 0 1 0 1 0 1 0
Oregon 12 2 0 0 1 3 0 1 1 2 2
Washington 7 1 0 0 0 0 2 2 0 1 1
U.S. TERRITORIES 20 3 0 0 4 2 6 1 1 1 2
American Samoa 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0
Guam 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Mariana Islands 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Puerto Rico 18 3 0 0 4 2 4 1 1 1 2
U.S. Virgin Islands 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0


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Table 45
Law Enforcement Officers Accidentally Killed
Time of Day, 1993-2002
Time Total 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002
Total 681 59 62 59 52 63 82 65 84 78 77
A.M.
12:01 - 2 73 8 4 6 6 9 7 8 11 10 4
2:01 - 4 57 7 4 8 3 5 8 6 9 4 3
4:01 - 6 41 5 5 2 5 2 4 7 5 4 2
6:01 - 8 41 2 3 3 3 2 8 4 5 5 6
8:01 - 10 47 1 2 7 6 5 3 5 8 5 5
10:01 -Noon 50 9 2 6 2 3 6 4 5 5 8
P.M.
12:01 - 2 58 6 0 3 5 3 5 9 9 7 11
2:01 - 4 65 3 9 4 3 5 11 5 8 10 7
4:01 - 6 48 3 4 2 5 9 9 4 2 2 8
6:01 - 8 50 3 2 3 3 5 10 3 6 8 7
8:01 - 10 52 5 9 1 3 3 4 2 8 9 8
10:01 -Midnight 77 5 12 10 7 9 5 6 7 9 7
Time not reported 22 2 6 4 1 3 2 2 1 0 1



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Table 46
Law Enforcement Officers Accidentally Killed
Day of Week, 1993-2002
Day Total 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002
Total 681 59 62 59 52 63 82 65 84 78 77
Sunday 77 6 8 7 6 8 13 10 5 9 5
Monday 91 5 8 13 8 6 10 13 8 13 7
Tuesday 108 11 9 7 8 8 15 7 15 13 15
Wednesday 109 11 7 10 7 8 14 3 14 12 23
Thursday 91 5 8 4 7 12 10 13 13 10 9
Friday 103 11 10 6 8 10 14 8 17 11 8
Saturday 102 10 12 12 8 11 6 11 12 10 10


Table 47
Law Enforcement Officers Accidentally Killed
Month, 1993-2002
Month Total 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002
Total 681 59 62 59 52 63 82 65 84 78 77
January 63 3 9 5 4 4 9 6 10 6 7
February 66 7 4 7 8 8 8 3 7 10 4
March 44 3 4 3 4 3 6 5 5 8 3
April 38 2 4 4 6 6 6 3 3 4 0
May 56 3 3 7 4 4 5 9 9 4 8
June 59 4 1 8 6 5 7 5 9 4 10
July 69 15 7 9 2 3 7 6 10 3 7
August 50 3 8 6 2 5 3 4 7 7 5
September 53 1 2 3 1 7 9 4 7 10 9
October 71 8 4 2 9 7 9 7 9 9 7
November 56 7 10 3 2 7 5 4 4 6 8
December 56 3 6 2 4 4 8 9 4 7 9


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Table 48
Law Enforcement Officers Accidentally Killed
Profile of Victim Officers, Age Groups, 1993-2002
Victim officers Total 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002
Total 681 59 62 59 52 63 82 65 84 78 77
Age
Under 25 years 47 1 3 4 2 7 9 5 7 4 5
25 - 30 years 171 16 20 21 17 15 18 14 18 19 13
31 - 40 years 233 23 21 19 24 20 21 23 26 27 29
Over 40 years 225 18 17 15 9 20 34 22 33 28 29
Age not reported 5 1 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 1
Average years of age 37 38 36 35 35 36 38 37 38 38 39


Table 49
Law Enforcement Officers Accidentally Killed
Profile of Victim Officers, Race and Sex, 1993-2002
Victim officers Total 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002
Total 681 59 62 59 52 63 82 65 84 78 77
Race
White 586 49 56 45 44 51 68 60 74 68 71
Black 65 7 5 11 6 10 6 3 8 7 2
Asian/Pacific Islander 10 0 0 3 1 1 2 1 1 1 0
American Indian/ Alaskan Native 15 2 1 0 0 0 6 1 1 2 2
Race not reported 5 1 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 2
Sex
Male 638 55 60 56 48 60 74 62 80 72 71
Female 43 4 2 3 4 3 8 3 4 6 6

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Table 50
Law Enforcement Officers Accidentally Killed
Profile of Victim Officers, Years of Service, 1993-2002
Victim officers Total 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002
Total 681 59 62 59 52 63 82 65 84 78 77
Years of service
Less than 1 year 39 1 3 6 3 3 4 6 4 5 4
1-4 years 178 10 19 13 11 21 27 14 21 22 20
5-10 years 190 23 20 23 19 16 15 15 19 19 21
Over 10 years 260 22 20 17 16 22 33 27 40 32 31
Years of service not reported 14 3 0 0 3 1 3 3 0 0 1
Average years of service 10 11 9 9 9 9 10 10 11 11 10


Table 51
Law Enforcement Officers Accidentally Killed
Profile of Victim Officers, 5- and 10- Year Averages, 1983-2002
Victim officers 2002 5-year averages 10-year averages
1993-1997 1998-2002 1993-2002 1983-1992
Average
Age (years) 39 36 38 37 36
Service (years) 10 9 10 10 9
Height 5' 11" 5' 11" 5' 10" 5' 10" 5' 11"

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Table 52
Law Enforcement Officers Accidentally Killed
Circumstance at Scene of Incident, 1993-2002
Circumstance Total 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002
Total 681 59 62 59 52 63 82 65 84 78 77
Automobile accidents 381 38 32 33 33 33 49 41 42 38 42
Motorcycle accidents 49 1 8 3 4 4 3 6 6 7 7
Aircraft accidents 58 9 10 8 1 4 4 4 7 5 6
Struck by vehicles 111 4 7 10 7 15 14 9 14 19 12
Traffic stops, roadblocks, etc. 38 1 3 1 4 4 4 3 7 7 4
Directing traffic, assisting motorists, etc. 73 3 4 9 3 11 10 6 7 12 8
Accidental shootings 29 5 2 2 2 1 3 3 3 5 3
Crossfires, mistaken for subject, firearm mishaps 17 2 1 7 1 1 3 2 1 2 2
Training sessions 9 3 1 0 1 0 0 1 1 2 0
Self-inflicted, cleaning mishaps (not apparent or confirmed suicides) 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 1
Other accidental (falls, drownings, etc.) 53 2 3 3 5 6 9 2 12 4 7


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Table 53
Law Enforcement Officers Accidentally Killed
State and Agency by Circumstance at Scene of Incident, 2002
State
⁠Agency		 Total Automobile
accidents		 Motorcycle
accidents		 Aircraft
accidents		 Struck by
vehicles		 Accidental
shootings		 Other
accidental
(Detail)
Total 77 42 7 6 12 3 7
ALABAMA 2 2 0 0 0 0 0
Department of Public Safety, Mobile 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Prichard 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
ALASKA 2 1 0 1 0 0 0
Department of Corrections, Anchorage 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
National Park Service, King Salmon 1 0 0 1 0 0 0
ARIZONA 3 1 1 0 0 0 1
Chandler 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Phoenix 1 0 1 0 0 0 0
Scottsdale 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 (explosion)
ARKANSAS 1 0 1 0 0 0 0
State Police, Little Rock 1 0 1 0 0 0 0
CALIFORNIA 6 4 1 0 0 1 0
Highway Patrol, Santa Cruz 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Orange County 1 0 1 0 0 0 0
San Fernando 1 0 0 0 0 1 0
San Francisco 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
U.S. Border Patrol, Chula vista 2 2 0 0 0 0 0
COLOARADO 1 0 0 1 0 0 0
Department of Natural Resources, Denver 1 0 0 1 0 0 0
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA 1 0 0 0 1 0 0
U.S. Park Police 1 0 0 0 1 0 0
FLORIDA 2 2 0 0 0 0 0
Columbia County 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Union County 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
GEORGIA 2 1 0 0 1 0 0
DeKalb County Police 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
East Point 1 0 0 0 1 0 0
ILLINOIS 2 1 0 0 0 0 1
Bellwood 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Chicago 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 (struck by train) ​
INDIANA 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Marion County 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
KENTUCKY 2 2 0 0 0 0 0
Department of Charitable Gaming, Frankfort 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Trimble County 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
LOUISIANA 1 0 0 0 1 0 0
St. John the Baptist Parish 1 0 0 0 1 0 0
MARYLAND 3 3 0 0 0 0 0
Baltimore 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Baltimore County Police 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Maryland National Capital Park Police, Montgomery County 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
MINNESOTA 2 2 0 0 0 0 0
St. Louis County 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
U.S. Forest Service, Cass Lake 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
MISSISSIPPI 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks, Jackson 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
MISSOURI 4 1 0 0 2 0 1
Highway Patrol, Willow Springs 1 0 0 0 1 0 0
Jasper County 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 (drowning)
St. Louis 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Truesdale 1 0 0 0 1 0 0
MONTANA 1 0 0 0 0 0 1
Bureau of Indian Affairs, Box Elder 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 (drowning)
NEVADA 1 0 1 0 0 0 0
Reno 1 0 1 0 0 0 0
NEW JERSEY 1 0 0 0 1 0 0
State Police, Cranbury 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 ​
NEW MEXICO 2 1 0 0 0 0 1
Albuquerque 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Bureau of Indian Affairs, Santa Fe 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 (drowning)
NEW YORK 3 3 0 0 0 0 0
Buffalo 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Cheektowaga Town 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
State Police, Tarrytown 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
NORTH CAROLINA 6 1 1 3 1 0 0
Boone 1 0 0 1 0 0 0
Charlotte-Mecklenburg 1 0 0 1 0 0 0
Chowan County 1 0 0 1 0 0 0
Pender County 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Raleigh 1 0 1 0 0 0 0
Wayne County 1 0 0 0 1 0 0
OHIO 1 0 0 0 0 0 1
Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District, New Philadelphia 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 (struck by tree)
OKLAHOMA 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Department of Public Safety, Enid 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
OREGON 2 1 0 1 0 0 0
Josephine County 1 0 0 1 0 0 0
Portland Police Bureau 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
PENNSYLVANIA 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Plumstead Township 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
SOUTH CAROLINA 5 2 0 0 3 0 0
Berkeley County 1 0 0 0 1 0 0
Clarendon County 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Elloree 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Highway Patrol, Florence 1 0 0 0 1 0 0
Summerville 1 0 0 0 1 0 0
TENNESSEE 2 2 0 0 0 0 0
Clarksville 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 ​
TEXAS 9 6 1 0 1 1 0
Coryell County 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Dallas 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Eagle Lake 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Harris County 1 0 0 0 0 1 0
Harrison County 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Houston 1 0 1 0 0 0 0
Houston County 1 0 0 0 1 0 0
Liberty County 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
U.S. Border Patrol, Weslaco 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
UTAH 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Iron County 1 1 1 0 0 0 0
VIRGINIA 2 1 1 0 0 0 0
Dinwiddie County 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
State Police, Fairfax Station 1 0 1 0 0 0 0
WASHINGTON 1 0 0 0 0 0 1
Seattle 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 (fall from horse)
U.S. TERRITORIES 2 0 0 0 1 1 0
Puerto Rico
Hato Rey 1 0 0 0 0 0 0
San Juan 1 0 0 0 0 1 0

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