The Associated Press reported that it had gathered reports of 1,422 unintentional gun discharges by police since 2012 at 258 different law enforcement agencies. It called its information gathering a “snapshot” of the problem because there are no reporting requirements for such incidents. The reports document all incidents in which a gun went off when it was not intended to. According to the report, police use different terms for these incidents including “accidental,” “negligent,” or “unintentional” discharges.
The AP also reported that it “found 21 cases where people died in accidental shootings by police. It identified another 134 where the officer injured himself, and 45 where an accidental discharge injured another officer. An officer accidentally shot bystanders in 34 instances and suspects in 19.”
Among the incidents reported was one that occurred in 2015 in Burlington, Iowa in which officer Jesse Hill shot and killed 34-year old mother Autumn Steele while she was having an argument with her husband. She was holding her three-year old son at the time.
According to the report, Officer Hill was approaching Ms. Steele and her husband, who were unarmed, “when their dog darted toward Hill, barking loudly, and the officer lost his footing, firing two shots as he fell backward into the snow.” One bullet hit the dog, and the other hit Ms. Steele, killing her.
Several police experts blamed inadequate training. The report noted that although all police get weapons instruction, there are no national standards for that training and that periodic retraining is generally limited.
According to Doug Tangen, a manager at the Washington State police academy: “Most people, cops included, don’t devote th[e] practice time to be able to shoot [a gun] responsibly or carry it responsibly,” he said.
Despite the absence of standards for police firearm education, there is no doubt that police have more gun training than most other members of the public.
Sources:
Martha Bellisle, “AP Exclusive: Accidental Shootings Show Police Training Gaps,” US News and World Report (December 9, 2019).
Martha Bellisle, “Unintentional Shootings Raise Questions About Arming Teachers,” Fox 29 Philadelphia (December 10, 2019).