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Data shows fewer officers dying in the line of duty nationwide

By Kirstin Garriss, CMG Washington News Bureau

Photos: Fallen police officers honored at candlelight vigil in Washington, DC Sgt. Allen Montoya salutes during the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund's Annual Candlelight Vigil, on the National Mall, Thursday, Oct. 14, 2021, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

By Kirstin Garriss, CMG Washington News Bureau

WASHINGTON — Off-duty Greensboro Police Sgt. Phillip Dale Nix was shot and killed while trying to stop a crime in December. His story is one of the 136 line of duty deaths from 2023.

“Each one of those 136 men and women are a real person with a family and really a strong connection to the communities they serve,” said Bill Alexander, CEO of National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund.

Preliminary data from the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund shows that’s a nearly 40 percent decrease compared to the previous year.

Alexander said this drop is largely connected to a sharp decline in COVID-19 deaths.

While he’s encouraged by these numbers, Alexander believes this report highlights the dangers officers still face every day.

“There is a cost to preserving our democracy. There’s a cost to maintaining a level of safety in our communities and unfortunately every single year that cost is borne out and measured by the lives the men and women in uniform who sacrifice everything to serve of us, trying to protect us,” he said.

Sgt. Nix was one of 47 officers killed by gunfire. Some officers were attempting to make an arrest or responding to a domestic disturbance when they died.

The report reveals many officers died from other causes like long-term illnesses and medical issues. This includes heart attacks or strokes brought on by stressful events on the job.

The names of fallen officers are remembered and engraved at the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, D.C.

The organization is preparing to add at least 151 officers, both recent and historical, line-of-duty deaths to the wall this spring.

“What we hope our organization is able to do is to provide some level of solace to the coworkers, to the families, to say the service and sacrifice of your loved one is not in vain and that we here at the memorial fund exist to forever honor their memory and to forever tell their story,” said Alexander.

Alexander said 2021 was the deadliest year for officers. 586 died in the line of duty largely because of complications from COVID-19.

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