In our recent study, our primary objective was to answer the query: “Population-Based Evaluation – How does the number of police shootings per 100,000 residents vary across different regions, and does the size of the population play a role in the frequency of these incidents?”

To tackle this, we began by collecting population figures for each county. Subsequently, we ascertained the total count of individuals shot by law enforcement in every county. This enabled us to pinpoint the counties in the U.S. with the most pronounced rates of police-involved shootings.

Furthermore, we’ve outlined several pivotal questions to further our research:

1. Crime Rate Influence: Examine the relationship between crime prevalence and the number of police shootings to understand if higher crime rates escalate such incidents.
2. Nature of Offenses: Highlight the specific offenses that predominantly result in police-involved shootings.
3. Connection with Mental Health: Investigate if police-involved shootings frequently concern individuals grappling with mental health issues.
4. Examination of Racial Disparities: Scrutinize the ethnic backgrounds of the affected individuals to discern potential racial prejudices in police-involved shootings.
5. Statewise Breakdown: Identify the state witnessing the most police-involved shootings and, in a separate analysis, recognize states with elevated homicide and minor crime rates.
6. Ethnicity and Shootings: Delve into whether there’s a discernible racial bias in police-involved shootings, emphasizing the ethnicity of the victims.
7. Effect of Police Training Duration: Explore if the length of training law enforcement officers undergo correlates with the number of police-involved shootings.
8. Gender Dynamics: Ascertain which gender is predominantly affected by police-involved shootings and probe into the underlying reasons for this pattern.