Apr 12, 2021 - Politics & Policy

Over half of police-involved killings in 2020 began after non-violent incidents

Data: Mapping Police Violence; Icons: WeePeople by ProPublica; Chart: Michelle McGhee/Axios
Data: Mapping Police Violence; Icons: WeePeople by ProPublica; Chart: Michelle McGhee/Axios

58% of police-involved killings in the U.S. last year began when officers responded to non-violent incidents, per the Mapping Police Violence database.

Why it matters: This week's lethal shooting of Daunte Wright near Minneapolis sparked new protests and comes in the wake of nationwide demonstrations against police violence.

Black people are killed by police at higher rates than white people in 47 of the 50 largest cities in the country, according to comparisons from 2013 to 2020.

  • Although Black people are three times as likely to be killed by police than white people, they are 1.3 times as likely to be unarmed compared to white people.
  • Police killings have generally increased in suburban and rural areas and decreased in cities.
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