By Jennifer Gomori, POJ Editor with excerpts from NLEOMF
Law Enforcement line-of-duty fatalities have dramatically fallen in the first half of 2025. There was a 53 percent decline in deaths nationwide when compared to the same time period in 2024, according to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund (NLEOMF).
From January 1 through June 30, 2025, 42 federal, state, county, municipal, and officers from the U.S. Territories died in the line-of-duty, according to data compiled in NLEOMF’s 2025 Mid-Year Preliminary Law Enforcement Officers Fatalities Report. By mid-year 2024, 89 officers had died in the line-of-duty.
There were notable drops in all categories of line-of-duty fatalities, including firearms-related deaths — which are the number one cause of officer fatalities in 2025 thus far. These gunfire fatalities resulted in 22 officer deaths from January through June 2025, which is a 21 percent decline compared to the 28 officers who died due to gunfire during the first half of last year.
“Every number that we publish in this report represents a selfless sacrifice made on behalf of the community and the nation in which they serve,” said NLEOMF CEO Bill Alexander. "We lament to document even a single such death, but we are encouraged by how this data is trending currently. We continue to use our data to not only highlight the continuing dangers faced by our law enforcement professionals, but to highlight best practices in officer safety and wellness that we hope is impacting the safety of the men and women who work tirelessly to protect us.”
Traffic-related fatalities fell by 50 percent overall, with 13 deaths in the first half of 2025 compared to 26 line-of-duty fatalities by mid-year 2024. Fatal crashes dropped a significant 59 percent, from 17 in the first half of 2024 to seven this year by the end of June 2025. Struck-by fatalities, involving officers struck and killed outside their vehicles, declined 33 percent. There were nine such deaths from January through June 2024 compared to six through mid-year 2025.
While Alexander doesn’t know exactly why officer deaths are dramatically lower than last year, he has his suspicions. He pointed to the work NLEOMF does to not only compile line-of-duty death data, but to use that information to better inform officers about safety and wellness.
“Our organization looks at the data, which really does give us a window into the how, when, and why the men and women in uniform face fatal outcomes,” he said, adding the focus then becomes, “How can we help the programs to make it safer for the men and women who are serving. I think there is something of that being reflected in the numbers we’re recording.”
He was quick to point out that many other law enforcement organizations are working to improve safety. “There are a lot of people in the law enforcement field who are looking forward, who are looking to make interactions with law enforcement as safe as possible,” Alexander said.
The category with the most noteworthy reduction was “Other Causes,” which plunged 80 percent between the two mid-year comparisons. "Other Causes" include long-term illnesses related to the September 11th terror attacks; fatal medical events caused by extreme or stressful on-duty experiences; and other rare yet fatal incidents. There were seven officer deaths by mid-year 2025 in the “Other” category compared to 35 “Other” fatalities for the same period in 2024.
“The other category encompasses mostly medical-related deaths — heart attacks, doing something physical,” Alexander said, adding they can range from stabbings, drownings and entering burning homes to helicopter or boating crashes. “Lots of those kinds of incidents are sort of random, haphazard if you will. We’re thrilled to see they’re down 80 percent … That is really a dramatic drop.”
He was pleased with the overall downward momentum for traffic-related and firearms fatalities as well. “Certainly, the trend line is very, very encouraging!” Alexander said. “The trend line for this year seems to be much lower than in years prior.”
Alexander credited a positive shift in the past six to eight months in mainstream media, social media, and among elected officials in the way they portray law enforcement.
“There has definitely been a change in the tone and tenor in media and social media about law enforcement to a degree that I think might be influencing some portion of those interactions that is also paying dividends. I hope it has influenced some of the behavior on the part of the public,” he said, adding that previously there were some in those same entities “… who were targeting and demonizing law enforcement. They were ratcheting up police interactions, and in many cases, escalating those interactions.”
California and Texas had the highest number of line-of-duty deaths at five fatalities each, followed by three Georgia officers and three Federal officers. Louisiana, New Jersey, Ohio and Virginia each had two officer fatalities.
Michigan was one of 19 states that lost one law enforcement officer in the first six months of 2025. Detroit Police Officer Kelvin Patrick (EOW Feb. 6, 2025) died from complications from line-of-duty gunfire sustained in May 1996, which left him partially paralyzed, according to Officer Down Memorial Page. Other states with one line-of-duty death each in the first half of 2025 are: Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Illinois, Kansas, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Wisconsin, and one U.S. Territorial Officer. By the end of June 2025, 26 states had zero fatalities so far this year.
Mid-Year Report statistics are based on preliminary data compiled by NLEOMF and may not represent a final or complete list of officers who will be added to the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in 2026.
Please click below to view the complete 2025 Mid-Year Preliminary Law Enforcement Officers Fatalities Report.
