Steven Rich
we have been collecting data for almost eight years on every fatal police shooting across the U.S. but we didn’t build it to last this long. so we’ve spent the better part of the past two years rebuilding our backend for the long haul and adding fields and features to our front end database. https://www.washingtonpost.com/graphics/investigations/police-shootings-database/
Police shootings database 2015-2023: Search by race, age, department

Filter the Washington Post database, which includes police shooting statistics since January 2015, by unarmed police shootings, race and age of victim and more.

The Washington Post
Dec 21, 2022 at 3:41pmWeb
Show threadSteven RichDec 21, 2022
perhaps the coolest new feature is that when you filter the data, you can download just that filter as a csv or json. we wanted to make it easier for folks without much knowledge of excel or data in general to get what they need.
Show threadSteven RichDec 21, 2022
as always, our data is on github. but we've added to that, too! we've added police departments and their unique ori codes so you can easily join our data with other federal policing data. here's a look at all those changes we made. https://github.com/washingtonpost/data-police-shootings
GitHub - washingtonpost/data-police-shootings: The Washington Post is compiling a database of every fatal shooting in the United States by a police officer in the line of duty since 2015.

The Washington Post is compiling a database of every fatal shooting in the United States by a police officer in the line of duty since 2015. - GitHub - washingtonpost/data-police-shootings: The Was...

GitHub
Show threadcrugeleyDec 21, 2022
@databae That is generous. Thank you.
Show threadNickDec 21, 2022
@crugeley @databae underrated feature is the ori codes. Love this and wish more datasets considered their relationship to third parties
Show threadPatrick BallDec 21, 2022
@databae Why fatal shootings and not all police homicides? Police commit lots of homicides that aren't shootings, the focus on shootings understates the scale of police homicides. And police commit some homicides that are not in media reports. See Edwards et al. https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.1821204116 and my somewhat simpler study (w K. Lum) in non-technical terms here https://granta.com/violence-in-blue/
Show threadnhomie 🦣Dec 21, 2022

@databae Awesome to see this project get additional attention!

#OpenData has inherent #transparency, and allowing your audience to #TrustButVerify as well as keeping the platform #OpenSource is powerful. Love it 👏

Show threadRicardoDec 21, 2022
@databae thank you for doing this.
Show threadanggiar Dec 21, 2022
@databae absolute madness. Ban Assault weapon for god's sake 🤦
Show threadTown vs. Beagle KillerDec 21, 2022

@databae I appreciate this.

For every unjustified police shooting that gets major news coverage, there are so many more that don't. One I'll never forget is Melissa Boarts in Alabama. Her family called police because the young mother was suicidal. Two officers shot & killed her. She was holding a small pocket knife & never approached them.

Our police situation is in a crisis.

Show threadAlaric Hartmann Dec 21, 2022
@databae I really wish we could repeal the #2a I would like to live in a country where owning arms isn't a right, but a responsibility and a privilege.
Show threadBrian HawthorneDec 21, 2022

Thanks to @drewharwell for boosting the above post from @databae showing data that black people are more than twice as likely to be killed by police officers than white people.

#QuotePost

Show threadWilf K 🇬🇧 🇨🇦Dec 21, 2022
@databae Are you also gathering data on violent crimes against persons and property??
Show threadUnDoctorDec 21, 2022
@airwolf85 @databae
Maybe they could also gather data on bear attacks! or Mosquito bites!
Or maybe they'll gather data that ISN'T readily available elsewhere so people can be informed on something that is under reported.
Show threadElyse Eidman-AadahlDec 21, 2022
@databae Glad to see this. It has been an invaluable source of data in an area where there is little data (and real barriers to collecting/analyzing data).
Show threadLeland GauntDec 21, 2022
@databae am I the only one that finds “Fatal Force” a touch offensive? Scrolling through the list, most people are armed with a weapon yet this title makes it sound like they are randomly shooting innocent people. I think the narrative should look at how we as a society have failed by allowing people to fall so far that they get in a violent confrontation with the police via drugs, poverty, racism etc etc, instead of “cops bad, criminals good” or vice versa.
Show threadGeorge StationDec 21, 2022
@databae Thanks in advance for fielding all the distracting, almost-trolling, sea-lion responses that are already coming in to derail this. Y'all are doing good work.
Show threadJoe ArisiaDec 21, 2022
@databae That is an insane number. In the UK, in 2021, we had two! TWO!!
https://www.inquest.org.uk/fatal-police-shootings
Fatal police shootings

Since 1990, the police have fatally shot 88 people in England and Wales. INQUEST digitally collects data on fatal police shootings through its casework service, monitoring of the media and parliamentary questions. Fatal Police Shootings England and Wales 1990 - 2025 Year Metropolitan Police Other Forces Total 2026 0 0 0 2025 0 4 4 2024 1 2 3 2023 1 0 1 2022 1 2 3 2021 1 1 2 2020 1 2 3 2019 1 2 3 2018 1 0 1 2017 4 2 6 2016 0 4 4 2015 2 1 3 2014 1 0 1 2013 0 0 0 2012 0 1 1 2011 1 1 2 2010 0 1 1 2009 0 2 2 2008 2 1 3 2007 3 2 5 2006 1 0 1 2005 2 4 6 2004 1 1 2 2003 1 1 2 2002 0 2 2 2001 2 2 4 2000 1 1 2 1999 1 2 3 1998 0 2 2 1997 0 0 0 1996 1 1 2 1995 1 1 2 1994 0 1 1 1993 2 1 3 1992 1 2 3 1991 0 3 3 1990 1 1 2 Total 35 53 88 Data last updated: 6 January 2026 Please credit INQUEST data when citing information or data from this page. Please contact [email protected] for further enquiries on our data. Deaths of people in and following police contacT Deaths of Black people in and following police contact INQUEST is completely independent of government. We rely on regular donations to carry out our work.  Support INQUEST and bereaved families in their fight for truth, justice, and accountability by becoming a regular donor today.  DONATE

Inquest
Show threadGeoDec 21, 2022
@databae Great. Good data availability is so important, especially for topics like this.
Show threadAndy Leslie 💙Dec 21, 2022

@databae

Whilst in the UK

Total since 1990: 80

Show threadNabeel SiddiquiDec 21, 2022

@databae

Excellent article. Do you guys draw on the Mapping Police Violence database as well?: https://mappingpoliceviolence.org/

Mapping Police Violence

Law enforcement agencies across the country are failing to provide us with even basic information about the lives they take. So we collect the data ourselves.

Mapping Police Violence
Show threadMiki VanoušekDec 21, 2022

@databae It's great that you keep track. Knowing what's happening is important.

I wonder what percentage of these killings was justified.

It's also interesting to see the number of killings is pretty constant, even though your graph almost makes it look like it is increasing to someone who isn't paying that much attention.

Show threadSocialistStanDec 21, 2022
@databae Pigs are mass shooters.
Show threadmudbucketDec 21, 2022
@databae Police are mercenaries for the rich and overseers of wealth and are lauded as a public service. Pretty sick.
Show threadRay JepsonDec 22, 2022
@databae notable that only 65 people will be legally executed. This is horrible.
Show threadbetonglenDec 22, 2022

@databae

thank you for this critical work 🖖🏽

checked out briefly and wanted to know if armed or unarmed is based on video/report or your independent assessment based available sources?