The United States lost over 25,000 local police personnel

Per the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the United States lost 25,076 local government police personnel when viewing a high point of 434,698 from November 2019 to November 2023, 409,662.

Per the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the United States lost 18,004 local government police personnel from the calendar year 2019 (431,666) to 413,662 in 2023.

Per the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the United States lost 2,116 state government police personnel from the calendar year 2020 (102,493) to 100,377 in 2022.

The good news is that per preliminary data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the last available figure in June of 2024, local government police personnel rebounded to 426,210.

The good news is that per preliminary data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the last available figure in June of 2024, for state government police personnel improved to 105,09.

As discussed below, federal preliminary data changes regardless of the agency involved. 

I chose low and high points to illustrate the degree of losses. 

False Media Narratives?

In 2021, I wrote Big Increase In Police Officers Leaving Per BLS. To summarize my findings at that time, “Per data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), the country lost 11,009 police officers from March 2020 to March 2021. The growth from 4,000 to 11,000 indicates a rapidly growing trend.”

From a previous article from The Marshall Project: “Officer Snowflake. Reporters are enabling a false narrative about demoralized cops fleeing their departments in the face of criticism for their misconduct.” Other national media reports offered similar findings.

From The New Republic: (link no longer exists) “The Damning Truth Behind Cop “Walkout” Stories-The New York Times and other news media are laundering an exaggerated narrative about besieged officers—one that’s meant to threaten anyone who questions police power.”

The article states that stories on cops leaving are, “part of a consistent, fairly exaggerated narrative emerging in response to ongoing efforts to end police violence: that such calls and protests have demoralized police to the extent that officers are fleeing the force and that a spike in crime is the inevitable price we will pay,” Officers Leaving.

US Department of Justice-Cops Facing A Historic Staffing Crisis

Recruitment and Retention for the Modern Law Enforcement Agency is a product of the Bureau of Justice Assistance and the COPS Office of the Office of Justice Programs, US Department of Justice. It offers the following:

“In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, a tightening labor market, heightened community frustration with the policing profession, and concerns about officer safety and well-being, law enforcement agencies across the country face an historic crisis in recruiting and retaining qualified candidates” (emphasis added).

“As agencies continue to seek innovative ways to attract qualified potential candidates and retain current staff, the crisis demands an immediate and effective response to ensure that law enforcement agencies can maintain staffing levels sufficient to support their communities’ public safety needs” (emphasis added).

“Law enforcement is at a crossroads (emphasis added) as more officers are leaving the field through resignation or retirement and fewer qualified applicants are considering policing as a career.”

USA Today: Police departments are grappling with a “historic crisis in recruiting and retaining” officers because of a tight labor market during the pandemic and community frustrations, the Justice Department said, recommending a series of policy changes Tuesday to find and keep officers.

The recommendations came in response to a survey of 182 police agencies across 38 states and Washington, D.C., that found a decline in sworn officers and hiring that couldn’t keep pace with losses.

The total number of sworn officers dropped from 83,497 in January 2020 to 79,464 in January, according to the survey by the Police Executive Research Forum.

Context

First, the Bureau of Labor Statistics records police personnel, not just police officers. Civilian employees comprised about 21 percent of the total full-time personnel in local police departments per the Bureau of Justice Statistics of the USDOJ.

Please note that this article does not include federal police personnel which has seen growth in recent years. 

There is no central source on yearly police employment beyond the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

There are, however, special reports. A Police Executive Research Forum survey indicated that between 2020 and 2021, the law enforcement resignation and retirement rates increased by 18% and 45%, respectively. Four of the largest metropolitan police departments are collectively down over 5,400 officers during 2022 and 2023. Further, law enforcement is experiencing a drastic decrease in the number of recruits — 27% to 60%, depending on the area per the FBI.

There are multiple cities in the US claiming large decreases in police officers. A CBS News Philadelphia exclusive investigation has uncovered concerning figures that show the Philadelphia Police force is down nearly 1,000 officers.

Why The Loss Of Police Officers?

It would take many more pages than this article to document the reasons as to why police officers left their jobs. There are surveys from Pew and the US Department of Justice indicating that police officers are reluctant to make stops and that there are millions of fewer police contacts.

What this means is that cops are reluctant to engage which may be the reason that arrests and crimes solved have plummeted. Response times to civilian calls for service are often over an hour in some cities which affects crime rates and totals. You can’t report a crime to a police officer who didn’t engage in a timely response.

Most law enforcement officers (and many police writers) attribute the loss of police personnel to the “defund the police” movement after a seemingly endless series of riots and protests over police use of force. The narrative seems to be a sense of disrespect for the police profession based on the actions of a few officers who acted improperly or illegally.

Police officers reasoned that if society or communities were willing to paint all cops based on the actions of a few, it counted as the same discrimination suffered by other groups. As one resigning police officer said, “If you are willing to judge a group based on the actions of a few, you are capable of any form of race or sex discrimination.” Families insisted that their police officer loved ones get out of the profession without delay.

Conclusions-Have We Turned The Corner?

Based on preliminary data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, it looks like we have. However, police commanders throughout the country continue to claim big losses in police officers. Services to the public continue to be curtailed. New initiatives are stalled.

The data from BLS indicates that the number of police personnel is now growing. Just note that preliminary data from federal agencies is just that, preliminary. Preliminary data from the US Department of Justice as to crime rates can be wrong and revised. It’s the same for data on jobs and the economy. Federal preliminary data is routinely revised.

Nevertheless, it’s the first indicator that the loss of police personnel has reversed somewhat. Other indicators suggest that things are changing due to increased arrests and more people going to jail or prison. Just note that after correctional populations and arrests and crimes solved plummeted by huge numbers, it was probable that there would be increases or, per researchers, a regression to the mean (or average).

Whatever all this means, it’s understood that we simply cannot judge an entire profession based on the misdeeds of a few. Medical errors have more recently been recognized as a serious public health problem, reported as the third leading cause of death in the US. One NIH study reported that approximately 400,000 hospitalized patients experience some preventable harm each year, while another estimated that 200,000 patient deaths annually were due to preventable medical errors. Based on this, are we going to stereotype the entire medical profession?

Yes, policing needs to improve. Yes, police officers need to be accountable. However, stereotyping an entire profession is counterproductive to the public’s safety.


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