US police fatalities rise %37 in 2010

The number of police fatalities in the Unites States has seen a dramatic increase in 2010 with most killings reported in the states of Texas, California, Illinois and Florida.


2010 has shaped up to be a deadly year for US law enforcement officers as figures show at least 160 police officers have been killed in the line of duty this year, marking a 37 percent increase from the 117 deaths last year, the Associated Press reported on Tuesday.

The figures have been compiled by the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, which is a nonprofit institution honoring the nearly 19,000 US police officers who have died in the line of duty throughout history.

The report has also pointed to a rise in the number of shooting deaths, with fifty-nine federal, state and local officers killed by gunfire in 2010, a 20 percent jump from last year's figures.

"A more brazen, cold-blooded criminal element is on the prowl in America, and they don't think twice about killing a cop," said Craig Floyd, the director of the memorial fund.

He also stated that the growing financial woes gripping many law enforcement officers in the United States may have largely contributed to the rise in their fatalities.

"We're asking our officers to do more with less. We're asking them to fight conventional crime," Floyd noted.

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Cops' Use of Illegal Steroids a 'Big Problem'
FROM AOL

The badge and a steroid-filled syringe -- it's not the typical image most have for the abuse of performance-enhancing drugs. But as more within law enforcement get nabbed in steroid investigations nationwide, observers say that usage levels among police officers could rival the seediest patches of the pro sports landscape.

"It's a big problem, and from the number of cases, it's something we shouldn't ignore," Drug Enforcement Administration spokesman Lawrence Payne told AOL News. "It's not that we set out to target cops, but when we're in the middle of an active investigation into steroids, there have been quite a few cases that have led back to police officers."

The pace of investigations into steroid use in the police ranks has picked up in recent months:
A former police officer in Canby, Ore., who allegedly took delivery of some steroids while on duty pleaded guilty in February to purchasing steroids.
An officer in South Bend, Ind., pleaded no contest in March to selling steroids.
A Cleveland police officer was sentenced to a year in prison and five years of supervised release in April after he was found guilty of illegally purchasing steroids.
A dealer in Paw Paw, Mich., allegedly told authorities that he supplied "several police officers" with steroids, which led one Kalamazoo officer to resign in May.

Victor Conte, founder of the now-defunct lab known as Bay Area Lab Co-Operative that supplied numerous athletes with steroids and other banned substances, said it wouldn't surprise him if as many as a quarter of police officers were using some kind of performance-enhancing drug.

Seem high? While there are no empirical studies on the prevalence of steroids in law enforcement, the recent revelations that 248 police officers and firefighters from 53 agencies were tied to a Jersey City, N.J., physician gives some credence to Conte's estimate. The monthslong investigation by The Star-Ledger of Newark also found that taxpayers often footed the bill for the drugs since many were prescribed.

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