More Security Officers Shot, But Fewer Deaths in 2023
Charlotte NC January 21 2024
Violence against private security and special police officers continues to increase at unprecedented rates each year and 2023 was no different.
During 2023, more security officers were shot but fewer died than in the previous year.
However, the number of unarmed security officers shot or killed continues to climb at the fastest pace.
During 2022, 167 security officers died on duty and of those, 123 of those security officers died from homicides.
In 2023, a total of 104 security officers including two special police officers died on duty and seventy-nine of those were homicides including three who were killed during a mass shooting, two who were killed during armored truck robberies, and nine who were killed during retail thefts.
While most officers died from gunshot wounds, four died of stabbings and three of blunt force trauma while nine others died of medical emergencies resulting in deaths that occurred while on duty.
Seven other security officers died in motor vehicle collisions including one security officer who was hit by a truck, one who was hit by a school bus, and one that was hit by construction equipment. Another security officer was killed after falling off a wall.
Security officers were also the victims of aggravated assaults at least 887 times in 2023.
In 2023, private security officers fired their firearms more than double that which had been reported in 2022 and were involved in at least sixty-three fatal shootings.
Methodology: Private Officer International employs a full-time news staff and a full-time statistician curating news from more than 3000 news sources daily. Our office also reviews dozens of public records including police reports, and a legal platform that lists criminal and civil case results and uses multiple other sources to cross-reference and verify various data.
Private Officer International also works closely with other reporting sources, law enforcement, and governmental agencies to substantiate both information and statistics.
