Briana Koeneman
Chicago Police Assault Revives 'Ferguson Effect' Theory
Video of a police officer being assaulted is reviving discussion around the "Ferguson effect" and whether it's tied to crime and policing.
LEARN MOREPosted: 12:19 p.m. EST Jan 11, 2017
Many police officers in the U.S. say their jobs have gotten more difficult.
And they say recent high-profile shootings by and against officers are largely why.
According to new numbers from the Pew Research Center, 86 percent of the nearly 8,000 officers surveyed said fatal encounters between police and black Americans have made their jobs tougher.
And 3 in 4 officers said they're now more hesitant to use force when it's appropriate because of the attention those incidents tend to get.
The report's lead author told the Los Angeles Times, "The fact that these incidents have brought so much attention to their job has actually made it harder to execute in certain circumstances."
As the number of attacks against police officers continues to grow, more than 90 percent of respondents said their colleagues worry more about their personal safety.
The Pew survey comes after a particularly violent year for law enforcement in the U.S.
According to data compiled by The Washington Post, more than 960 people were shot and killed by police in 2016.
And the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial says over 130 police officers were killed in the line of duty last year — the highest number in five years, according to its count.
