Officer Shootings on the Rise
By: Lynn Adler
Updated: April 12, 2012
DUNCANSVILLE BORO., BLAIR COUNTY - Some alarming news for our boys in blue.
The number of officers killed in the line of duty is up dramatically.
According to a non-profit organization that tracks officer deaths in the line of duty, officerdown.org, 76 officers were shot to death while on the job in 2011, nearly double the number killed four years ago in 2008.
It's an unsettling statistic that has many local departments looking for new ways to keep their department safe.
The Duncansville Police Department, for instance, now wears new bullet-proof vests designed to be lighter, more conformable and built even stronger.
Duncansville Police Chief, Jim Ott, says the right equipment combined with proper training is the best way to officers safe.
"I think in certain standards our violent crimes are higher. Certain crimes have dropped, but others have increased," Ott said.
The last officer killed in the region was back in 2002 when Ebensburg State Trooper Joseph Sepp was shot and killed when a traffic stop ended in a shoot out.
The number of officers killed in the line of duty is up dramatically.
According to a non-profit organization that tracks officer deaths in the line of duty, officerdown.org, 76 officers were shot to death while on the job in 2011, nearly double the number killed four years ago in 2008.
It's an unsettling statistic that has many local departments looking for new ways to keep their department safe.
The Duncansville Police Department, for instance, now wears new bullet-proof vests designed to be lighter, more conformable and built even stronger.
Duncansville Police Chief, Jim Ott, says the right equipment combined with proper training is the best way to officers safe.
"I think in certain standards our violent crimes are higher. Certain crimes have dropped, but others have increased," Ott said.
The last officer killed in the region was back in 2002 when Ebensburg State Trooper Joseph Sepp was shot and killed when a traffic stop ended in a shoot out.
