On-duty police deaths may hit 70-year low in 2013

[Jesus Malverde]

In the 1968 movie "Bullitt," actor Steve McQueen plays a police detective who floors his Mustang GT in a tire-screeching car chase up, down and over San Francisco's hills.

Fast-forward to the 21st century: Traffic accidents have exceeded gunfire as the leading cause of police on-duty deaths for 14 of the past 15 years.

A 2011 National Highway Traffic Safety Administration study of 733 fatal police crashes found half involved only the officer-driven vehicle. Forty-two percent of the officers who died didn't have their seat belts on.

"It's ironic that police officers present the greatest dangers to themselves as they try to help the public," said Pat Tobin, a retired San Francisco police motorcycle supervisor who lectures on officer safety. "But honestly, that is the case."

http://www.sfgate.com/nation/article/On-duty-police-deaths-may-hit-70-year-low-in-2013-5084998.php

Level as low as anyone has seen since 1944.

[sibelian]

1. "Bullitt"...

What a RIDICULOUS name...

[Jesus Malverde]

2. Prolly "chase" would have been a better name

[Brigid]

3. That's because thw cops shoot first these days.

[Live and Learn]

4. Hmm, no mention of the collateral damage they cause

in their quest to "help the public". The reality is that they speed and don't use seat belts because they feel they are above the law. Even the article states:

Police drive fast to actual emergencies but sometimes officers speed "because they can," Stockton said.

Our neighbor is a police officer that has frequent (loud) parties and his officer friends consistently park on the wrong side of the street ( a given ticket for anyone else in this neighborhood). Why? Because they can and they enjoy showing it off.

What about all the innocent people that get caught up in these accidents? I don't see the police as any better than the suspects they are chasing.

I really miss the days of 1-Adam-12 when officers were at least portrayed as polite and actually caring about public safety.