Assaults on Larimer County law enforcement climb

Assaults on law enforcement officers in Larimer County rose 31 percent during a time when "war on police" rhetoric dominated headlines and newscasts, records from the district attorney's office show.

But there should be an asterisk next to that figure.

That's because the number of second-degree assaults against local law enforcement went from 36 in 2014 to 47 in 2015. That appears to be a stark climb at first glance, but those assaults represent a small fraction of the thousands of interactions police in Larimer County have with the public each year. During that same time, more officers were hired by agencies and more are on the streets.

Why exactly the number of local felony filings climbed is unclear.

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As of Tuesday, 18 people were charged in Larimer County since Jan. 1 with the same Class 4 felony of second-degree assault on a peace officer, records from the Larimer County District Attorney's Office show. That number is on track to mirror recent years. It captures only behavior that results in injury and warrants a more serious charge than being verbally confrontational.

"It’s still a small percentage of the public that’s displaying this behavior," Larimer County Sheriff Justin Smith said in a telephone interview, adding a small, yet a growing percentage contacted during the most basic traffic stop or welfare check is becoming “almost anarchist in mentality."

“There is somewhat of a generation that’s come up that just doesn’t believe anybody has authority over them. So we’re seeing that come out as the kind of assaultive behavior that’s driving these numbers up," Smith said.

As of Wednesday, Colorado was tied with Texas and Maryland for having the highest number — three — of line-of-duty deaths in 2016. Two law enforcement officers have been fatally shot in Colorado this year and a third was involved in a fatal vehicle crash. Though the numbers are small, they show a departure from 2015 when one officer was killed by gunfire and three were fatally struck by vehicles.

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Not captured in those reports is the number of officers who have been shot in the state this year.

Nationally, 32 officers have died in the line of duty this year — 16 by intentional gunfire and the rest a result of vehicle-related incidents or other accidents, according to the Officer Down Memorial Page. Gun-related deaths are up sharply compared to this time last year nationally. But overall line-of-duty deaths have dropped 11 percent.

Fort Collins and Larimer County have remained relatively insulated from those conversations, and support for police officers and sheriff's deputies remains relatively high, Smith and others have said repeatedly.

“What I’m seeing is the vast majority of the public remains very supportive of law enforcement in our area and actually nationwide," Smith said. "But we’re seeing a percentage out there that’s increasing at a very high rate who, immediately upon contact, are just challenging the authority of peace officers in general without getting physical, just in a verbal way, they’re very emboldened.”

Discussion about what many have dubbed the "war on police" has made headlines, especially after the 2014 unrest in Ferguson, Missouri. Some, including Smith, have criticized the political rhetoric surrounding law enforcement throughout this election cycle.

There has not been a conclusive study linking a national narrative that challenges law enforcement and headlines in recent years to an uptick in assaults or violence.

Statisticians are quick to note the dangers in comparing one year to another — trends take time. And those trends show the number of officers killed in the line of duty in 2015 went up slightly from 2014 but overall marked one of the safest years in recent U.S. history, according to the National Law Enforcement Memorial Fund. Most officers died in traffic-related incidents, about one-third died by gunfire and the remaining fatalities stemmed from a number of other reasons, including medical issues, such as heart attacks, or other illnesses.

Increased tension with some of the public has been reported by officers near and far. Overall officer assault figures have seen a similar decline, especially when taken in the context of the particularly violent 1970s.

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Finalized figures from the FBI are typically released in spring.

Better training and defensive tactics coupled with enhanced medical technology and modified protocols have contributed to that decline, experts say. And while officials are continuing to monitor violent encounters with officers, there remains an effort at the local level to better connect with the public and sidestep some of the rhetoric on the national stage.

“For the most part, our community is very supportive of the police and work with us when we’re trying to resolve issues,” said Sgt. Joel Tower, who oversees the training unit at Fort Collins Police Services. "I think our citizens see what’s going on in the country and they turn around and thank us for the job that we do ... I think we’re fortunate here in Fort Collins where we don’t have those issues."

Reporter Jason Pohl covers breaking news for the Coloradoan. Follow him on Twitter: @pohl_jason.