The use of firearms by police forces varies widely across the world, in part due to differences in gun use policy, civilian firearm laws, and recording of police activity. Police may require that officers use warning shots before aiming on-target, officers may need to make verbal warnings before using their firearms, and officers may be prohibited from carrying weapons while performing tasks such as highway patrol where gun use is not expected.
Unarmed police forces
In nineteen countries or territories, the police do not carry firearms unless the situation is expected to merit it:
Bhutan
Bhutan (; dz, འབྲུག་ཡུལ་, Druk Yul ), officially the Kingdom of Bhutan,), is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is situated in the Eastern Himalayas, between China in the north and India in the south. A mountainous ...
,
Botswana
Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label=Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalahar ...
,
Cook Islands
)
, image_map = Cook Islands on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg
, capital = Avarua
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Avarua
, official_languages =
, lan ...
,
Fiji
Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...
,
Iceland
Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...
,
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
,
Kiribati
Kiribati (), officially the Republic of Kiribati ( gil, ibaberikiKiribati),[Kiribati]
''The Wor ...
,
Malawi
Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast ...
,
Marshall Islands
The Marshall Islands ( mh, Ṃajeḷ), officially the Republic of the Marshall Islands ( mh, Aolepān Aorōkin Ṃajeḷ),'' () is an independent island country and microstate near the Equator in the Pacific Ocean, slightly west of the Internati ...
,
Nauru
Nauru ( or ; na, Naoero), officially the Republic of Nauru ( na, Repubrikin Naoero) and formerly known as Pleasant Island, is an island country and microstate in Oceania, in the Central Pacific. Its nearest neighbour is Banaba Island in Ki ...
,
New Zealand
New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
,
Niue
Niue (, ; niu, Niuē) is an island country in the South Pacific Ocean, northeast of New Zealand. Niue's land area is about and its population, predominantly Polynesian, was about 1,600 in 2016. Niue is located in a triangle between Tong ...
,
Norway
Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...
,
Samoa
Samoa, officially the Independent State of Samoa; sm, Sāmoa, and until 1997 known as Western Samoa, is a Polynesian island country consisting of two main islands (Savai'i and Upolu); two smaller, inhabited islands (Manono Island, Manono an ...
,
Solomon Islands
Solomon Islands is an island country consisting of six major islands and over 900 smaller islands in Oceania, to the east of Papua New Guinea and north-west of Vanuatu. It has a land area of , and a population of approx. 700,000. Its capita ...
,
Tonga
Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...
,
Tuvalu
Tuvalu ( or ; formerly known as the Ellice Islands) is an island country and microstate in the Polynesian subregion of Oceania in the Pacific Ocean. Its islands are situated about midway between Hawaii and Australia. They lie east-northeast ...
,
South Korea
South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...
, the
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...
(except for
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
), the
U.S. Virgin Islands
The United States Virgin Islands,. Also called the ''American Virgin Islands'' and the ''U.S. Virgin Islands''. officially the Virgin Islands of the United States, are a group of Caribbean islands and an unincorporated and organized territory ...
and
Vanuatu
Vanuatu ( or ; ), officially the Republic of Vanuatu (french: link=no, République de Vanuatu; bi, Ripablik blong Vanuatu), is an island country located in the South Pacific Ocean. The archipelago, which is of volcanic origin, is east of no ...
. These countries exhibit
gun-homicide rates markedly lower on average than countries with armed police forces. Their police forces commonly adopt a philosophy of
policing by consent.
A survey conducted in Great Britain in 2004 found that 47% of citizens supported arming all police while 48% were opposed to the idea.
Australia
The
Australian police forces are monitored by the
Australian Institute of Criminology, which has recorded police shooting deaths since 1989. Police in Australia routinely wear firearms which are personally issued to them. All fatal police shootings are subject to a mandatory coronial inquest. A 2013 review by the Australian Institute of Criminology found that 42% of victims of fatal police shootings had a mental illness. A more recent history of deaths by police shootings is tabulated below.
:1.Data provided by the Australian Institute of Criminology
Austria
Police in Austria are monitored by the
Austrian Interior Ministry
In Austria, the Ministry of the Interior (german: Bundesministerium für Inneres, colloquially ''Innenministerium'', abbreviated: BMI) is a federal government agency serving as the interior ministry of the Austrian government. It is chiefly res ...
. Since 2006 the records of police firearm use have been expanded to show whether or not a round was targeted at people.
:1.10 injuries, severity not specified.
Data reported on by Heute
Czech Republic
All uniformed police officers belonging to the
Police of the Czech Republic
The Police of the Czech Republic ( cs, Policie České republiky) is the national law enforcement agency of the Czech Republic. It was established on 15 July 1991 under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of the Interior. The agency is tasked with p ...
(PČR) and all
Municipal police departments carry a firearm. Most officers are equipped with
CZ 75D Compact pistols. The use of firearms by police officers belonging to the PČR is regulated by the Act no. 273/2008 Sb. (Act on the Police of the Czech Republic), which defines the ways an officer can use his service weapon and states that a police officer of the PČR is not a subject to the Act no. 119/2002 Sb. (Act on Firearms and ammunition) and as such doesn't have to possess a weapons licence.
The use by officers belonging to a municipal police department is regulated by the Act no. 119/2002 Sb. therefore they need to possess the appropriate weapons licence. The use is further regulated by the Act no. 553/1991 Sb. (Act on the Municipal Police), which gives officers more rights regarding the use of a firearm, such as the right to open carry.
The regulation for the Municipal Police is generally more strict than the regulation for PČR and doesn't give municipal police officers the same rights as PČR officers.
Table below only includes the statistics for PČR officers and doesn't include municipal police departments.
:1.Data until 31st of August
:2.Data until 13th of November
Data reported on by the Police of the Czech Republic
Denmark
Since 1965 all Danish police officers have carried a police pistol when performing their duties.
Danish police
The Police of Denmark ( da, Politiet, fo, Løgreglan, kl, Politiit) is the Danish National Police force, and the interior part of the Danish security forces (the Danish military being the exterior) in the Kingdom ( The Danish Realm: Denma ...
used
Walther PPK 7.65 mm as the standard pistol until 2000, and then the
Heckler & Koch USP 9 mm was introduced. In 2008 police began to carry
pepper spray in addition to their firearm. Further, all officers are trained in the use of
Heckler & Koch MP5, which is issued on special assignments or severe incidents.
Additionally, every police district have specially trained "Reaktionspatruljer" deployed round the clock, carrying the 5.56 × 45 mm NATO
GV M/10.
The appropriate use of firearms is described in the ''Act on Police Activities'' regulations, section 16 and 17 is translated into English in.
In Denmark the police use of weapons is recorded by the police department. The police department classifies tear gas as the use of a firearm. In 2006 the death of four people by police shootings prompted an investigation into the use of firearms by the Danish police force from 1996 to 2006. The investigation found no significant trends of increased firearms use by the police.
:1.Includes warning shots and tear gas fired.
:2.Includes shots aimed at vehicle tyres.
More recent figures have been published separately in a different format.
Finland
Police in Finland have access to weapons including a
Glock 17,
Heckler & Koch MP5,
Taser
A taser is an electroshock weapon used to incapacitate people, allowing them to be approached and handled in an unresisting and thus safe manner. It is sold by Axon, formerly TASER International. It fires two small barbed darts intended to ...
and pepper spray. The use of firearms is recorded by the Police College and the
Finnish ministry of the Interior.
Data reported on by YLE uutiset
France
In France the police are regularly armed, however, there is no official record of how frequently firearms are used. An independent group ''A Toutes Les Victimes'' has tracked the number of deaths and injuries by police which have been published in the media since 2005.
:1Unofficial data from the A Toutes Les Victimes census
Germany
German police forces routinely carry weapons. Police firearm statistics dating back to 1996 are available, a summary of recent years is tabulated below.
Iceland
Icelandic police do not regularly carry firearms. In 2013 the first fatal police shooting took place where one man was killed. As of October 2019 this remains the only fatal police shooting since Iceland became an independent republic in 1944.
Ireland
The strength of the
Garda Síochána
(; meaning "the Guardian(s) of the Peace"), more commonly referred to as the Gardaí (; "Guardians") or "the Guards", is the national police service of Ireland. The service is headed by the Garda Commissioner who is appointed by the Irish Gover ...
(national police) is approximately 15,000 officers, of which approximately 4,000 are licensed to carry firearms. The rest are unarmed.
The majority of armed Gardai (officers) consist of ordinary detectives (routinely armed with handguns for personal protection) or belong to specialist regional
Armed Support Units. An elite national
Emergency Response Unit
An Emergency Response Unit is a name for a law enforcement or other civil government entity that is trained and equipped to respond quickly to emergency situations. In some instances, such a designation is given to a Special Weapons and Tactics uni ...
exists that is trained in hostage rescue tactics.
Fatal shootings by Gardai are rare and individual statistics for same are not published.
Jamaica
The
Jamaica Constabulary Force's (JCF) use of lethal force has been monitored by
Amnesty International
Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...
. From 1983 to 2000 the Jamaican police force has been reported to kill between 121 and 355 people each year with an average of 171 deaths. A subsequent report by Amnesty USA shows that from 1998 to 2015 between 101 and 307 people were killed each year with an average of 192 deaths. In 2010, the Independent Commission of Investigations (INDECOM) was established as an independent oversight body to tackle the frequent use of lethal force by members of the Security Forces, which has made progress towards reducing the problem. A summary of recent years is tabulated below:
Japan
Uniformed officers carry sidearms, typically the
New Nambu M60 revolver while on duty only. Security Police and
Special Assault Team carry semi-automatic pistols and heavier submachine guns and rifles depending on the situation.
Netherlands
Law enforcement in the Netherlands
National Police Corps ( nl, Korps Nationale Politie), colloquially in English as Dutch National Police or National Police Force, is divided in ten regional units, a central unit, the police academy, police services center, and national control ...
regularly carry firearms. In every incident where a firearm round is shot and/or hits a person there is an investigation conducted to determine if the use of a firearm was justified. The results of the investigations are made publicly available; the cases for each year are tabulated.
New Zealand
The
New Zealand Police
The New Zealand Police ( mi, Ngā Pirihimana o Aotearoa) is the national police service and principal law enforcement agency of New Zealand, responsible for preventing crime, enhancing public safety, bringing offenders to justice, and maintai ...
do not routinely carry sidearms. Under normal circumstances, police in New Zealand carry pepper spray, batons, and Tasers, though all are trained with the Glock 17 pistol and Bushmaster M4 semi-automatic rifle. These firearms are carried in all frontline police vehicles and are available for use should a situation require it. There are times when due to a credible threat, New Zealand's 12 district police commanders have the authority to arm all of their frontline officers. After the 2019
Christchurch mosque shootings all frontline police officers throughout the country were instructed by the Police Commissioner to carry guns while on duty.
In October 2019, New Zealand's Police Commissioner announced a six-month trial of Armed Response Teams (ARTs) in three Police districts. The ARTs are specialist armed police personnel who are part of the
Armed Offenders Squad
The Armed Offenders Squad (AOS) are specialist part-time units of the New Zealand Police based around the country available to respond to high risk incidents using specialist tactics and equipment.
The AOS was established when front-line poli ...
. The teams are a minimum of three, in specialised vehicles equipped with tactical options and operate seven days a week.
When force is used (excluding handcuffs) a tactical operations report is filed. Use of tactical options is published by the police force.
A summary of tactical options used in 2010–2014 was published in 2015. In 33,198 events over the four-year period, firearms were drawn 1,422 times, resulting in 5 injuries. Tactical operations resulting in fatalities are not recorded in the database.
In 2020 seven firearm discharges occurred in five incidents, three resulted in fatal injuries, one in non-fatal injuries, and one missed the subject.
Since 1916,
New Zealand Police
The New Zealand Police ( mi, Ngā Pirihimana o Aotearoa) is the national police service and principal law enforcement agency of New Zealand, responsible for preventing crime, enhancing public safety, bringing offenders to justice, and maintai ...
have used lethal force 40 times.
Norway
The
Norwegian Police Service (NPS) only carry firearms in response to specific situations, keeping their
Heckler & Koch MP5s and
Heckler & Koch P30
The P30 is a polymer framed semi-automatic handgun by Heckler & Koch, available in 9×19mm Parabellum and .40 S&W.
History
Early prototypes of the P30 were referred to as the P3000. The P30 is marketed by the manufacturer as a law enforcement s ...
s locked in the patrol cars. The use of firearms is recorded by the police station which publishes detailed statistics on the annual use of firearms. The information presented in the 2014 report is detailed in the table below.
Russia
Generally, all law enforcement officers in the Russian Federation are armed with pistols at a minimum. There is no consistent recording of firearms use across the country. The
Russian police forces routinely carry weapons.
Use of firearms can only be lawful where it is necessary to confront an imminent threat of death or serious injury or a grave and proximate threat to life. Since 2011 the
Investigative Committee is responsible for the investigation of alleged unlawful use of police force.
South Africa
The
South African Police Service
The South African Police Service (SAPS) is the national police force of the Republic of South Africa. Its 1,154 police stations in South Africa are divided according to the provincial borders, and a Provincial Commissioner is appointed in eac ...
is monitored by the
Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) which releases an annual report on the performance indicators of police activity. The IPID publishes deaths as a results of police action and deaths in police custody. Use of firearms forms the majority of the killings by police; shootings by police are all classified under ''deaths as a result of police action''.
# Includes all categories of deaths as a result of police action with labels "Shot with service firearm", "Shot with police firearm" and "Negligent handling of a firearm leading to death". Excludes suicides.
Sweden
The
Swedish Police Authority
The Swedish Police Authority ( sv, Polismyndigheten) is the national police force (''Polisen'') of the Kingdom of Sweden. The first modern police force in Sweden was established in the mid-19th century, and the police remained in effect under loc ...
always carry firearms when on public duty. The standard weapon issued to officers is the
SIG Sauer P226. The police authority report that normally police will threaten to use their weapon but do not discharge it; this happens about 200 times per year. In a typical year the police shoot 20
warning shot
In military and police contexts, a warning shot is an intentionally harmless artillery shot or gunshot with intent to enact direct compliance and order to a hostile perpetrator or enemy forces. It is recognized as signalling intended confronta ...
s aimed at people or vehicles. An investigation reviewing the use of weapons by police details the firearm use from 2003 to 2014.
Only the most serious use of violence is counted, if an incident involves both warning shots and shots for effect it is only counted in the shots for effect section.
United Kingdom
Police forces in the United Kingdom are managed by different bodies and thus have different standards for firearms usage. Police in Northern Ireland regularly carry firearms whereas the police in Great Britain do not.
England and Wales
The police force in England and Wales do not routinely carry firearms. A 2006 poll of 47,328 members of the Police Federation of England and Wales found that 82% do not want officers to be routinely armed while on duty.
The UK
Home Office reports annual statistics on the use of firearms by police forces. The use of firearms is recorded by the police department which publishes detailed statistics on the annual use of firearms dating back to 2003. One report published figures for 2003–2013; later years are published individually. While the Home Office monitors the use of police equipment, the
Independent Police Complaints Commission monitored the fatalities of people due to police contact up to 2016.
#Data provided by the UK Home Office.
#Data provided by the Independent Police Complaints Commission
In 2017 the Independent Police Complaints Commission was replaced with the
Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC). The IOPC publishes the use of firearms in a different format. Reported figures on fatal shootings by police are tabled below.
#Data provided by the UK Home Office.
#Data provided by the Independent Office for Police Conduct
Northern Ireland
The
Police Service of Northern Ireland publish an annual report on the police use of force which lists the frequency that firearms were drawn and fired. However, this report does not list the injuries or deaths resulting from firearms use.
Data published by the Police Service of Northern Ireland.
Scotland
The Police Investigation & Review Commissioner publishes an annual report on assessments of complaints and investigations carried out.
#Conventional firearms only.
#Deaths and injuries arising from firearms and other police contact.
Data published by the Police Investigation & Review Commissioner.
United States
Generally, all law enforcement officers in the United States are armed with semi-automatic pistols at a minimum. There is no consistent recording of firearms use across all states; some bodies, such as the
New York Police Department
The New York City Police Department (NYPD), officially the City of New York Police Department, established on May 23, 1845, is the primary municipal law enforcement agency within the City of New York, the largest and one of the oldest in ...
(NYPD), report on firearms discharge. In 2015 NYPD reported a record low of eight deaths as well as fifteen injuries caused by police firearms discharge.
The
Federal Bureau of Investigation
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, ...
publish the number of "justified" homicides by law enforcement.
In response to the lack of published data, the organization ''
Campaign Zero
Campaign Zero is an American police reform campaign launched on August 21, 2015. The plan consists of ten proposals, all of which are aimed at reducing police violence. The campaign's planning team includes Brittany Packnett, Samuel Sinyangwe, D ...
'' launched Mapping Police Violence to collect comprehensive data on people
killed by police in the United States. Similarly, the British newspaper ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' launched "The Counted" – a program to record the number of fatal police shootings throughout the United States. ''The Guardian'' reports that 1,146 people were killed in 2015 and 1,093 people in 2016.
#Justifiable homicides recorded by the FBI
#Mapping Police Violence. Unofficial figures based on media reports
#The Counted. Unofficial figures based on media reports
#Fatal Force. Unofficial figures based on media reports
References
{{reflist
Law enforcement use of force
Gun politics by country