US: More than 60,000 police officers assaulted in 2020; 31% injured, informs FBI

FBI's data estimates that more than 60,000 officers were assaulted in the line of duty in 2020, in the US with more than 40 dead, and 30.9 per cent of them, which is 18,568, were injured. The information was drawn from 9,895 law enforcement agencies to reach the figure of 60,105, an increase of 4,071 from 2019, as per the reports of ABC News. According to the FBI, the majority of the assaults on officers occurred after they responded to disturbance reports, such as family conflicts and bar fights.

Jason Johnson, President of the Law Enforcement Legal Defense Fund (LELDF) said that the increased assaults on cops occur at a time when they are apparently under attack on all fronts, as per the news network. According to the most recent FBI data, 54 policemen were slain while on duty in the first nine months of 2021, compared to 37 in the same period of 2020.

Percentage of officers departing or retiring surged

According to new LELDF data, the percentage of officers departing or retiring surged by double digits from June 1, 2020, to April 30, 2021, in the aftermath of George Floyd's killing and the ensuing demonstrations. The case of Chicago officer Ella French, who was shot during a traffic check in August, has already dominated headlines this year. French, who was just 29 years old, was the city's first female officer slain in the course of duty since 1988, and the first Chicago police officer killed in the line of duty since 2018, according to the news network.

In a statement provided to Fox News on Tuesday, Patrick Yoes, National President of the Fraternal Order of Police, attributed the uptick in violence against law enforcement officers to "lingering animosity toward law enforcement officers, overheated political rhetoric, and a decline in respect for law and order." According to him, 100 law enforcement officers have been shot in 81 separate ambush-style incidents this year, which is a 153 per cent rise from this time last year.

FBI Director's statement

FBI Director Christopher Wray said in an interview last week that law enforcement officers these days are dealing with a broad spectrum of threats at a time when the work is more perilous than ever, according to Fox 7. He warned that the risks are quite serious and constant. He also empathised with officers who lost their lives saying that every single one of them was a son, daughter, father, mother, husband or wife.

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