by Zoe Thorkildsen (Author), U. S. Department of Justice (Author), George Fachner (Author)
Ambush attacks against law enforcement officers remain a threat to officer safety with the annual number of attacks holding steady since a decline in the 1990s and the proportion of fatal attacks on officers attributable to ambushes increasing. Concerns about targeted violence against police are rising in an era of strained community relations, struggles with police legitimacy, and anti-government extremism. Yet little research has examined ambush attacks as a specific and directed form of violence against police. This study addresses that gap in the literature through a mixed-methods examination of ambush attacks against law enforcement. Its four major lines of inquiry are qualitative analysis of police perspectives on ambushes, analysis of ambush attack incidents and survivability, investigation of the community and departmental characteristics associated with ambush attacks, and a survey of organizational learning practices in the aftermath of ambushes. This represents the first substantive research in 30 years focused on civilian ambush attacks on police and presents recommendations for next steps and additional research.