The Nation : 153 Officers Killed in ‘88; 23 in California

One hundred and fifty-three police officers lost their lives in the line of duty in 1988, and California had the highest number killed, with a loss of 23 officers, the National Assn. of Chiefs of Police said. Texas was second, with 21, followed by Florida, with 13. The national total, which included eight women officers, was down slightly from 1987, when 155 officers, three of them women, lost their lives. Robert Ferguson, president of the association, said many of the people who killed officers were on alcohol or drugs. Of the officers killed, 75 died of gunshot wounds, 58 in traffic chases and accidents and the rest in plane crashes, stabbings, drownings and other causes in the line of duty. Their average age was 27. Gerald Arenberg, a spokesman for the association, said the 153 deaths included a broad range of law-enforcement officials, from county sheriff deputies and local police to FBI and corrections officers.