New Public Database Shows all the People Killed by the Police This Year

I did a search and didn't find anything on this database that I ran across today on Gizmodo. If already posted please let me know.

This is a pretty well put together database of people killed by the police this year so far for the folks that like to keep up with this type of information. Below is the article from Gizmodo:

For every police killing that garners national attention, there are dozens that go unnoticed. And while the US government doesn’t keep an official record of police shootings, it’s becoming increasingly clear that such records are badly needed.

That’s why The Guardian started keeping its own tally last week, using social media, local news reports, and public records. The project, called “The Counted,” is an open, interactive database cataloging the men and women killed by the police in the United States this year. At 479 deaths far, The Guardian’s estimates are roughly twice as high those offered up by the FBI.
You can search the site by specific names, filter by race and ethnicity, state, gender, age, and cause of death. Each person reported in the database has an information card detailing the circumstances of death and the status of his or her case, as well as links back to the original source. Anyone can to send The Guardian a tip on any individual case on file or one not yet reported. Entries can be added, removed and revised as soon as new information becomes available.

Jon Swaine, a reporter at The Guardian, spoke to NPR about the project:

We’re looking at local media reports. We’re looking at police and coroner press releases. Sometimes they’re not noticed by the media. We’re talking to people via this system that we’ve built now where the people can submit tips, can submit news if friends or if people they know or if they’ve even seen something happen. So we’re really - I mean, we’re making an attempt to cast an eye over the country, and obviously we’re open to the possibility that we, too, are missing some and they’re not being reported. But we thought better to make an effort and try to make a more comprehensive database.
Take a moment to have a look at the site. It’s a harrowing experience, but we all need to start opening our eyes.

I don't have a lot to say on this, but I thought I would bring it to ya'lls attention here at ATS. I don't like the current state of our police forces here in the USA and like to see that this info is available to the public as it should be. This is by no means a 100% compilation of all the killings by police due to the many that go unreported, but I feel it's a step in a better direction.

Here is a direct link to the site from The Guardian: The Counted

That's a very disturbing graph.

I did notice that Caucasian people were killed (or should I say "executed") the most. I can't help but feel that is a bit ironic considering how loud everyone is when a white cop kills a black suspect (again, i could say "executed"). It's all subjective to the individual cases of course; nevertheless, it's an interesting difference.

I wonder what we would see if we looked at other countries?

It reminds me of Iceland where Iceland grieves after police kill a man for the first time in its history

Why the police force doesn't keep track of the killings is beyond me. You'd think that level of record-keeping isn't just simple to do, but at the very least responsible. I guess they just can't count that high.

a reply to: Ghost147

Yes I agree it's quite disturbing. I feel it sets a dangerous precedence as well.

There is a big enough wedge as is in the divide of the police and the citizens. I feel it would be better to include police deaths in the graph as well to see both sides of the issue.

a reply to: SgtHamsandwich

That would be an excellent Idea. I hope this information becomes very wide spread.

I wonder how many cops have been killed by suspects this year? Last time I checked it was 8 so 480 to 8 . Sounds like being confronted by cops is a lot more dangerous then being one

a reply to: alienjuggalo

I know for sure that I am scared to death (no pun intended) to have a run in with a LEO for whatever reason it may be.

It's sad because it shouldn't be like that.

So all those articles saying black people are killed by cops moreso than whites are completely wrong then.
This is bound to stir up some #.

a reply to: AzureSky

I feel what they are getting at is cops are more likely to shoot and kill blacks than whites over warrentless crimes. It's a gray area on the reasons why a lot the black deaths happen that everyone is fed up with.

You can't look at the physical numbers and get an assesment of the situation like that. Logic will tell you there are more whites than blacks in America so obviously the white deaths will be higher than blacks. The focal point is the REASON for the deaths.

You look through the reasons on a lot of those deaths on the graph and most are warrented. Folks that are brandishing weapons and such against the police. The folks getting killed over crimes that do not warrent death as punishment through the court systems is the hot topic here. The LEO's have taken upon themselves to be judge, jury, and executioner. That's the problem.

One thing that I noticed on the graph is 28 of the current 479 deaths were from Tasers.

To me that's a crazy high number for a suposed "non lethal" weapon.

a reply to: Ghost147

Black Americans are more than twice as likely to be unarmed when killed during encounters with police as white people, according to a Guardian investigation which found 102 of 464 people killed so far this year in incidents with law enforcement officers were not carrying weapons.

An analysis of public records, local news reports and Guardian reporting found that 32% of black people killed by police in 2015 were unarmed, as were 25% of Hispanic and Latino people, compared with 15% of white people killed.

The findings emerged from a database filled by a five-month study of police fatalities in the US, which calculated that local and state police and federal law enforcement agencies are killing people at twice the rate calculated by the US government’s official public record of police homicides. The database names five people whose names have not been publicly released.

Truth Dig

There's a lot more to it than just number killed.

originally posted by: AzureSky
So all those articles saying black people are killed by cops moreso than whites are completely wrong then.
This is bound to stir up some #.

So, the numbers show that approx 49% of the people killed are white. (243/489)
And 28% are black. (138/489)

When you consider that blacks are only ~12% of the population and whites are ~73%, it shows that, percentage-wise, MANY more blacks are killed by cops than whites.

Interesting website. I'm glad someone is keeping track of this.

a reply to: SgtHamsandwich
It shows that other countries are taking an interest in this disturbing time in america. Shame how the guardian has to do all the work when the government doesn't with to disclose accurate figures. I hope all americas see this as most sources have it as less than 350