2023 saw a record year of killings by police in U.S.

The number of people killed by police in the United States reached a new high in 2023, according to new research.

2023 police killings increased dramatically

Mapping Police Violence, a non-profit research group, dockets deaths at the hands of police officers. Last year, it recorded the highest number of killings since its national tracking began in 2013.

Statistics explained

The data reported that police officers killed 1,329 people in 2023, representing nearly a 19-percent increase over the 11-year span.

Nearly 90% of those killed were fatally shot, according to Abdul Nasser Rad, managing director of research and data at Campaign Zero, who runs Mapping Police Violence.

There were only 14 days without a police killing last year and on average, law enforcement officers killed someone every 6.6 hours, according to the report.

Meanwhile last year, the number of people killed by gunfire and officers killed in the line of duty declined, according to data from the Gun Violence Archive. There was an increase in the number of police officers shot.

The newly released data suggests a grim reality and a systemic crisis, with an average of about three people killed by officers each day, with slight increases in recent years. In 2022, 1,250 were killed by police.

The data also reported that Black people were about 2.8 times more likely to be killed by officers than their white counterparts between 2013 and 2023.

Recording police misconduct

For decades, many Americans have suffered various forms of brutality and injustice at the hands of “bad” law enforcement officers.

When a civilian puts in a complaint against the officer only a small percent of complaints result in the officer being disciplined —partly because the accusations are hidden.

Half of the battle is knowing who the “bad” law enforcement are and proper action being taken.

Missin Peace, a national police misconduct database that collects formal civilian complaints against law enforcement, helps fill that void.

In 2022, we had a conversation with the creators, who urged those who filed a complaint against an officer, to upload it on their website as well.

While there is still much work to do, it’s a start.