Which statement about police killings versus officer deaths is true?

• A. Officers are killed more often than civilians by police
• B. Police kill far more civilians than officers are killed in the line of duty
• C. Both are equal
• D. There is no data

Answer: (B)

The main idea is the relative frequency of deadly force: how often police kill civilians compared to how often officers are killed in the line of duty. Across reliable data sources, police use of deadly force results in far more civilian deaths each year than officers die at the hands of criminals. In the United States, civilian fatalities from police actions run in the hundreds to around a thousand annually, while officers killed in the line of duty are typically in the tens to low hundreds, depending on the year. This large disparity means the statement that police kill far more civilians than officers are killed in the line of duty is the best-supported answer. Keep in mind counts can vary by source and definition, but the overall pattern is consistent: far more civilians are killed by police than officers are killed in the line of duty.