Three year FBI study of the deaths of 54 law enforcement officers, integrating the
examination of the officer, the offender and their
confrontation by Greg Conner, Associate Professor, University of
Illinois, Police Training Institute.
FOCUS ON THE CONFRONTATION
|
Scene Circumstances
|
39% arrest situations/crimes in progress
|
22% traffic pursuit/stops
|
13% disturbance calls
|
11% handling, transporting, custody of prisoners
|
Time
of Day
|
30% 12:01am – 6am |
28% 12:01pm – 6pm |
28% 6:01pm – midnight |
Weapon
Used
|
72% handgun |
13% rifle |
9% shotgun |
Cartridge Used
|
41% .38 Smith & Wesson Special |
15% .357 Remington Magnum |
10% .32 Smith & Wesson |
10% 9mm Luger-Parabellum |
Geographical Variance
|
49% South |
12% Northeast |
19% Midwest |
19% West |
FOCUS ON THE OFFENDER
|
Demographics
|
96% were male |
26 years of age |
60% were white |
5 feet 9 inches |
176 pounds |
45% married, 32% divorced |
34% no degree, 60% high school degree |
Criminal History
|
74% regularly carried a handgun |
80% described themselves as “instinct” shooters |
72% had previous arrests for drug offenses |
76% were engaged in drug or alcohol activity just prior to the incident |
41%
were involved with alcohol or drugs at the time of
the incident |
Psychological
Evaluation |
56%
were diagnosed as antisocial personality type,
including such traits as: |
-Disregard
or social obligations |
-Enter
only advantageous relationships |
-High
levels of aggression |
-Low
tolerance for frustration |
-Not
readily modifiable by experience |
48%
had murdered or attested to murder prior to the
incident |
36%
had been shot at prior the incident |
54%
had practiced with their weapons within a month of
the encounter |
74%
had practiced informally |
FOCUS
ON THE OFFICER
|
Demographics
|
98%
were male |
34
years of age |
93%
were white |
5
feet 10 inches |
188
pounds |
81%
married, 2% divorced |
83%
high school degree, 9% college degree |
Agency
Affiliation
|
46%
municipal police |
26%
sheriff’s police |
15%
state police |
4%
federal officers |
Duty
Assignment
|
70%
assigned to one officer vehicle |
9%
assigned to two-officer vehicle |
9%
assigned to detective or special assignment |
6%
off duty |
57%
of the attacks were at night |
Behavioral
Descriptors
|
Friendly
and well-liked by community and department |
Uses
less force than other officers in similar situations |
Perceives
self as more public relations than law enforcer |
Uses
force only as last resort |
Only
8% of partner officers returned fire |
85%
failed to fire their weapon |
Doesn’t
follow all the rules, especially in regard to: |
-
Arrests |
-
Traffic stops |
-
Does not call for or wait for back up |
Tends
to look for the “good” in others |
“Laid
back” and “easy going” |
57%
of the offenders characterized the victim officer as
unprepared |
Only
15% were wearing body armor |
FOCUS
ON PROCEDURES
|
Errors
|
Failed
to call for backup |
Initiated
contact prior to backup arrival |
Incomplete
searches |
Improper
or non-use of handcuffs |
Improper
positioning of police vehicle |
Conflicts
|
Suspect
placement in front seat of squad during contact |
Prohibitions
on drawing and/or directing service revolver |
Absence |
Lacked
skills for “drawn weapon” confrontations |
Lacked
skills in confronting multiple subjects |
Lacked
skills in team arrest tactics |
FOCUS
ON THE FUTURE
|
Checklist
of Challenges
|
Development
of functional perception skills |
Improved
identification options during off duty/raid
assignments |
Tactical
approaches for armed suspect(s) |
Improving
adherence to establish police protocols |
Correlation
and integration of survival techniques at all stages
of confrontational |
Contact
and Control
|
Encouragement
of wearing body armor from recruit class to
retirement |
Increased
emphasis on searching frequency and intensity |
Enhance
constant vigilance toward risk assessment |
Increase
instruction in areas of potential medical
contingencies during violent |
Confrontations
|
Adopt
and adapt a holistic approach to system and self
strategies for safety |
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©2004 The Police Policy Studies Council. All rights reserved. A Steve Casey design.