Breitbart.com, a conservative news site, suggested that Illinois officer Charles Gliniewic’s recent death is another example of a “war on cops” stemming from the tumultuous Black Lives Matter movement. Gliniewic was shot and killed on Tuesday while in pursuit of three suspects—two white and one black—but there is no indication that it was influenced by the Ferguson-born crusade. According to the Daily Dot, Breibart might be reaching with their accusations.
The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund (NLEOMF) reports that the number of police officers killed by gunfire this year has dropped by 13 percent. In other words, 26 officers were killed this year compared to 30 around this time last year.
Breitbart was right about one thing—more officers are dying this year than in 2014. However, that number can be attributed to traffic accidents and other incidents if you go by what the NLEOMF is saying. Their data also shows that police fatalities have remained at a consistent low for the last two decades, a number not seen since the ‘50s, and assaults and injuries have declined over the last decade as well.
On the opposite end, the number of civilians killed by police increased from 768 in 2013 to 1,106 in 2014, and is projected to be even higher this year.
