FBI says 76 law enforcement officers died in the line of duty in 2013

The FBI says that 76 law enforcement officers were killed in the line of duty last year — 27 during criminal acts and 49 in accidents.

In addition, nearly 50,000 officers were attacked while on duty, according to the bureau.

These figures were released Monday in the 2013 edition of the "Law Enforcement Officers Killed and Assaulted" report.

This information is "proof positive of the dangers that all officers willingly face, day in and day out, to protect the rest of us," the FBI said.

The number of officers who died in felonious acts dropped by 22, from 49 in 2012 to 27 in 2013, but that is cold comfort for their families.

Of these, six were making arrests, five were ambushed, five were investigating suspicious people, four were in "tactical situations," four were answering disturbance calls, two were conducting traffic stops or pursuits and one was involved in investigative activity (such as surveillance or a search), according to the FBI.

Authorities have identified 28 suspects who allegedly attacked these officers — of whom 20 had criminal records.

Of the 49 accidental deaths, 23 were the result of automobile accidents.

A variety of sources were consulted to compile the report, including the FBI's field offices and Uniform Crime Reporting Program, as well as nonprofit organizations.

The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund, headquartered in Washington, D.C., says that more than 20,000 U.S. law enforcement officers have "made the ultimate sacrifice" since the first known line-of-duty death in 1791.

Stephen G. Fischer Jr., a spokesman for the FBI's Criminal Justice Information Services Division, explained that the FBI started taking a more active role in preventing and investigating officers’ deaths in the early 1970s.

In 1971, executives at a law enforcement conference, "Prevention of Police Killings," called for greater involvement from the bureau.

This resulted in the collection of additional data and the publication of two reports the following year – "Law Enforcement Officers Killed Summary" and "Analysis of Assaults on Federal Officers" – which were ultimately combined in 1982 to form the annual "Law Enforcement Officers Killed and Assaulted."