WASHINGTON (AP) -- The FBI says 47 law enforcement officers were killed in the line of duty as the result of criminal acts last year, 25 fewer than in 2011.
According to the preliminary data, the offenders who committed the killings used firearms in 43 of the 47 deaths. Two officers were killed with vehicles used as weapons, one was killed with a knife and one officer died after being beaten.
Twenty of the slain officers were wearing body armor at the time of the incidents.
Separately, 45 officers were killed in the line of duty in 2012 as the result of accidents, eight fewer than in 2011. Twenty-two of those died due to automobile accidents, 10 were struck by vehicles and six officers were in motorcycle accidents.
