'This is a devastating and unacceptable trend,' Eric Holder said. Holder: More cops slain by illegal guns

The number of officers killed in the line of duty jumped 13 percent in 2011 compared with the year before — and U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder condemned the increase as “a devastating and unacceptable trend” that he blamed on illegal firearms.

The number of law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty rose to 173 this year, from 153 in 2010, the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund announced Wednesday. This year’s figure is 23 percent higher than 122 killed in the line of duty in 2009.


Holder said “too many guns have fallen into the hands of those who are not legally permitted to possess them,” in explaining the increase.

This past year, 68 officers died in incidents related to firearms, a figure that nearly matched the decade-high record of 69 firearms-related deaths in 2007.

For the past 13 years, more officers died in traffic-related incidents than in incidents involving firearms — 2011 is the first time in more than a decade to diverge from this trend.

Indeed, while traffic-related accidents have traditionally been the main source of office fatalities, 64 officers reportedly were killed in 2010 for this reason. In addition, 41 additional deaths were due to other causes.

“This is a devastating and unacceptable trend. Each of these deaths is a tragic reminder of the threats that law enforcement officers face each day,” Holder in a statement. “I want to assure the family members and loved ones who have mourned the loss of these heroes that we are responding to this year’s increased violence with renewed vigilance and will do everything within our power — and use every tool at our disposal — to keep our police officers safe.”

The reported deaths of 173 officers killed in the line of duty raises serious concerns but still is below the historical high of 280 fatalities set in the 1970s, and less than 240 fatalities recorded in 2001.

For much of the past year, one fatality in particular has weighed heavily on Holder’s mind, that of U.S. Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry, whose December 2010 murder sparked interest and public investigations into the Justice Department’s botched Fast and Furious gun-walking program.

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