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**Annual FBI Report Is a Reminder of the Stress, Trauma, and Violence Officers Endure To Protect and Serve**
 December 2017 | Volume 10 | Issue 12

Each year the FBI releases an annual report that speaks  directly to the grim fact that law enforcement officers do not only address  violence, but also often experience it, and the physical and psychological  tolls it brings. The physical and violent reality of law enforcement compounds  other routine occupational stressors like shift work, low morale, and high-pressure  and emotionally taxing encounters. Personal stressors also take an effect such  as interpersonal relationships, significant life events, and general  physiological and mental health.

This past October, the FBI released its 2016 edition of the Law Enforcement Officers Killed and Assaulted (LEOKA) report, the most comprehensive data collection of  its kind. More officers were reported killed, assaulted, and injured in the  line of duty than in the previous year.1 Among the agencies reporting to LEOKA, there was roughly one assault for every  10 officers, for a total of 57,180 assaults.2 Most (78 percent) of these assaults involve “personal weapons,” but often (31  percent of the time) result in injuries nonetheless. In relative terms,  firearms are used less frequently than personal weapons; however, the 2,377  firearm assaults against officers reported in 2016 is substantial. This data  shows that, every day, *at least* six  officers are threatened with a firearm while protecting and serving the public.3 Nearly 300 officers sustained injuries as a result of these encounters, and  most (94 percent) of the 66 felonious deaths of police were from handguns,  rifles, and shotguns.

The issue is persistent and reflects the nature of law  enforcement at the street level. Over the past decade, LEOKA has documented  around 50,000 total assaults—2,000 involving firearms—each year. In response, the field has documented and promoted a myriad of training, policies, and procedures to address officer safety and wellness in volumes of research papers, best practice  articles, and professional reports.  The COPS Office has worked with the field to highlight these promising solutions, such as the following:
- Preplanning the provision of psychological  services is essential, as it can help ensure that the agency has thought  through various scenarios, including when an officer is killed, and that officers  are familiar with the availability of services in the wake of a critical or  traumatic incident. 4
- Law enforcement executives and experts often  cite the need for better, actionable intelligence on threats against the public  and police to improve officer safety. 5
- Research on ambush assaults against police has  found that distance, receiving assistance from another officer, wearing body  armor, and returning fire were all associated with greater odds of survival. 6
- Post-trauma treatment programs hold promise for  officers that have been exposed to critical incidents, deaths, and other stressors.  As one example, the Franciscan Center Post-Trauma Education and Retreat Program  served Tampa Police Department officers, who later reported positively on its impact  on their healing process. 7

A great deal of knowledge and resources have been developed  to enhance officer safety and wellness. Some of these practices, like wearing body armor, have been widely adopted, but are still without universal acceptance  and use throughout the field. Throughout the country, law enforcement agencies  conduct incident reviews of serious assaults and other critical incidents,  which identify lessons learned and help improve practices and enhance officer safety. The groundbreaking Blue  Alert system has been adopted in a majority of states across the country,  aiding the rapid transmission of information to law enforcement, media, and the  public about violent offenders who threaten the lives of officers.8 Counseling practices have benefited from a strong knowledge base in the mental health and social services field. These practices seek to address the trauma endured by officers, as we learn the implications for officers and their relationship with the communities they protect. As noted in this issue of the Dispatch, law enforcement agencies are beginning to implement programs than emphasize mindfulness as a way of managing and reducing stress among their officers.

While the progress is impressive, we are still in the emerging  stages of understanding what works and how to institutionalize those practices  throughout the field. Local governments, advocates, researchers, and federal  partners should do everything possible to provide state-of-the-art and scientifically-sound  practices that protect and serve law enforcement as police officers put their  health and well-being on the frontlines for all of us. As outlined in the *Presidential Executive Order on Preventing  Violence against Federal, State, Tribal, and Local Law Enforcement Officers*.9 the Department of Justice is committed to leading on this issue. Doing so will require continued investments in research, training, and  technical assistance that meets the demands of the field.

 George  Fachner          Senior  Program Specialist (COPS)          Contributing  Writer 

**Resources:****COPS Office Officer  Safety and Wellness Resources**https://cops.usdoj.gov/default.asp?Item=2844**Blue Alert System**http://bluealert.us/blue_alert**The Center for  Officer Safety and Wellness**http://www.theiacp.org/CenterforOfficerSafetyandWellness******Law Enforcement  Officer Safety Toolkit**https://www.valorforblue.org/Documents/Publications/Public/lawenforcementofficersafetytoolkit0917.pdf******Destination Zero**http://www.nleomf.org/programs/destination-zero/******CrimeSolutions.gov  Health and Mental Health Program Reviews**https://www.crimesolutions.gov/TopicDetails.aspx?ID=98******National Center for  Trauma-Informed Care and Alternatives to Seclusion and Restraint**https://www.samhsa.gov/nctic

References:1 Federal  Bureau of Investigation, “FBI Releases 2016 Statistics for Law Enforcement  Officers Killed and Assaulted in the Line of Duty,” press release, October 16,  2017, https://www.fbi.gov/news/pressrel/press-releases/fbi-releases-2016-statistics-for-law-enforcement-officers-killed-and-assaulted-in-the-line-of-duty.2 Federal Bureau of Investigation, *2016 Law Enforcement Officers Killed and Assaulted* (Washington, DC:  Federal Bureau of Investigation, 2017), https://ucr.fbi.gov/leoka/2016/officers-assaulted/assaults_topic_page_-2016.3 Nearly a quarter of law enforcement agencies do not  report assault data to the FBI.4 Deborah Spence. *Improving  Law Enforcement Resilience: Lessons and Recommendations. Officer Safety and  Wellness Group Meeting Summary* (Washington, DC: Office of Community  Oriented Policing Services, 2017).5 Joseph B. Kuhns et al., *Understanding Firearms Assaults against Law Enforcement Officers in the  United States*. (Washington, DC: Office of Community Oriented Policing  Services, 2016).6 George Fachner and Zoë Thorkildsen, *Ambushes of Police: Environment, Incident  Dynamics,* George Fachner and Zoë Thorkildsen, *Ambushes of Police: Environment, Incident  Dynamics, and the Aftermath of Surprise Attacks Against Law Enforcement* (Washington,  DC: Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, 2015). 7 Julia Hill et al., *Making  Officer Safety and Wellness Priority One: A Guide to Educational Campaigns*(Washington,  DC: Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, 2014).8Office of Community Oriented Policing Services,  “National Blue Alert Network,” fact sheet, (Washington, DC: Office of Community  Oriented Policing Services, 2017) https://cops.usdoj.gov/pdf/blue-alert/Blue_Alert_Fact_Sheet.pdf.9 The White House, *Presidential  Executive Order on Preventing Violence Against Federal, State, Tribal, and  Local Law Enforcement Officers*, February 9, 2017, https://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2017/02/09/presidential-executive-order-preventing-violence-against-federal-state.

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The Community Policing Dispatch is the e-newsletter of the COPS Office. 

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