Analysis of Police Shootings of Unarmed Black Males in the US
This research article from the Brookings Institution examines the legal basis for police shootings of unarmed black males in the United States. It discusses national fatal police shootings by officers, the racial breakdown of victims, criminal case dispositions, and high-profile cases involving unarmed black male victims. The data reveals alarming disparities in the rates of fatal shootings, particularly among unarmed black males, compared to other demographic groups.
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Deadly Force: The legal basis for police shootings of unarmed black males Brookings Race, Prosperity & Inclusion Initiative The Brookings Institution October 26th,2018
Agenda National fatal shootings by police officers National fatal police shootings of all victims (by race) National fatal police shootings of unarmed victims (by race) Criminal case dispositions
National fatal shootings by police officers Fatal Shootings by Police, 2015-2018 Number of fatal shootings 1200 1087 1074 1000 975 948 800 600 504 469 460 400 337 256 250 231 200 187 181 171 164 113 26 19 19 14 0 2015 2016 2017 2018 Source: Fatal Encounters, 2018
National fatal shootings of all victims by race Share of Males in the U.S. Population, 2017 All Victims of Fatal Police Shootings, 2015-2018 Black males are killed by police officers at 3x their rate in the U.S. population and 2x the rate of white males Total victims: 4084 Black Males 7% Other/ Black Males 22% Hispanic Males 9% Unknown Race Males 10% Black Males Native American Males 1% Hispanic Males All Other Individuals 7% Black Males All Other Individuals 52% Hispanic Males 16% Native American Males Hispanic Males White Males Native American Males White Males 31% All Other Individuals in the US Native American Males 2% White Males White Males 43% All Other Individuals Source: US Census Bureau, 2017 Source: Fatal Encounters, 2018
National fatal shootings of unarmed victims by race All Unarmed Victims of Fatal Shootings by Police, 2015-2018 Share of Males in the U.S. Population, 2017 Total victims: 248 Unarmed black males are killed by police officers at almost 5x their rate in the U.S. population and 4x the rate of unarmed white males Black Males 7% All other Individuals 7% Hispanic Males 9% Black Males 34% Native American Males 1% All Other Individuals 52% White Males 38% Black Males Black Males White Males 31% Other/ Hispanic Males Hispanic Males Hispanic Males 17% Unknown Race Males 4% Native American Males White Males Other/Unknown Race Males White Males All Other Individuals in the US All Other Individuals Source: US Census Bureau, 2017 Source: Washington Post, Police Shootings , 2018
High profile cases of 17 unarmed black male victims Stephon Clark, March 18, 2018 Walter L. Scott, April 4, 2015 Botham Jean, September 6, 2018 Christian Taylor, August 7, 2015 Terence Crutcher, September 16, 2016 Akai Gurley, November 20, 2014 Philando Castile, July 6, 2016 Laquan McDonald, October 20, 2014 Keith Lamont Scott, September 20, 2016 Tamir Rice, November 22, 2014 Paul O Neal, July 28, 2016 Michael Brown, August 9, 2014 Alton B. Sterling, July 5, 2016 *Eric Garner, July 17, 2014 Samuel DuBose, July 19, 2015 Dakota Bright, November 8, 2012 *Freddie Gray, April 19, 2015 *Death as a result of physical violence/bodily injury by police officers
Criminal case dispositions of the 17 black male victims Source: New York Times
Criminal charges and convictions against officers are rare nationally Criminal Case Dispositions of Officers Arrested for On-Duty Fatal Shootings (2005-2017) 21 Pending (26%) 28 Convicted (35%) 80 TOTAL OFFICERS WERE ARRESTED FOR ON-DUTY FATAL SHOOTINGS Convicted Not Convicted Pending 31 Not Convicted (38%) Source: Philip M. Stinson, "Police Shootings Data: What We Know and What We Don't Know," April 20, 2017
Reasonable threat - police officer perspectives Officer Guyger said that she mistook Jean s apartment for her own and shot him thinking he was an intruder. Source: Dallas News, September 18, 2018 Police had said officers fired at Clark believing he was pointing a gun at them. Source: Washington Post, March 30, 2018 Officer Shelby calmly assert(ed) that she had a reasonable fear that Mr. Crutcher was reaching for a gun and that she simply followed her training. Source: NYT, May 17, 2017 Officer Loehmann told the grand jury that he fired out of fear for his safety after Tamir grabbed the pellet gun, which he believed to be real. Source: NYT, December 28, 2015 Vinson felt Scott was an imminent threat to him and the other officers he fired because Scott was looking at the officers like he was trying to decide who to shoot first. Source: Washington Post, November 30, 2016
