Mid-Year Report Finds Slight Uptick in LODDs

A mid-year line-of-duty fatality report released by the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund this week shows a slight uptick in officer deaths so far this year.

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According to preliminary data compiled by the NLEOMF, 64 law enforcement officers have been killed in the line of duty during the first half of 2015. This represents a three percent increase over the same period in 2015 in which 62 officers were killed.

For the third year in a row, traffic-related incidents have been the leading cause of officer fatalities. Thirty officers were killed as a result of traffic-related incidents, an increase of 20 percent from the same period last year.

Firearms-related fatalities were the second leading cause of death, decreasing 25 percent with 18 fatalities compared to 24 in the same period last year.

Officers feloniously killed during a traffic stop or pursuit was the leading circumstance of fatal shootings, with four fatalities.

In the first half of 2015, 16 officers died as a result of other causes unrelated to firearms or traffic, increasing 23 percent during the same period in 2014.

Job-related illnesses, such as heart attacks, increased in the first half of 2015 with 16 officer deaths compared to 13 officers during the same period in 2014.

Sixty-two fallen officers were male and two were female. Their average age was 40 years, with 13 years of service. On average, each officer left behind two children.

"Each day some 900,000 men and women work to keep our communities safe, and we owe each of them a debt of gratitude," NLEOMF Chairman and CEO Craig W. Floyd said in a statement. "While I’m concerned to see an increase in traffic-related fatalities -- many are often preventable deaths -- it's encouraging to see a decrease in firearms-related fatalities. This report reminds us that much more work needs to be done to improve officer safety and wellness in our country."