last year
In May, the Federal Bureau of Investigation released its report on “Officers Killed and Assaulted in the Line of Duty” for the year 2025.
From 2021 to 2024, the FBI saw “more officers . . . feloniously killed (258) . . . than any other consecutive four-year period. That said, the number of felonious fatalities decreased from 64 in 2024 to 53 the subsequent year. The lowest tally of the 21st century came in 2013 with 27.
Though fatalities dipped, “the past decade shows the rate of non fatal assaults against law enforcement officers has been increasing since 2021.” Almost 28,000 officers suffered minor injuries in the line of duty in 2025.
And law enforcement does not only address crime. They also provide support, as it did recently, with the response to natural disasters, bringing hope and comfort to those who, in many cases, lost everything.
Unfortunately, all too often a lack of communication and understanding has formed barriers between police and communities. The National Night Out organization seeks to reforge the bonds of trust that once linked police and people. Often at National Night Out, this happens one law enforcement officer and one child at a time.
For 11 years now across the United States, law enforcement departments have worked to engage the communities they serve through National Night Out. With media coverage of law enforcement during that period often critical and sometimes hostile, officers, deputies, and troopers have seen the “National Night Out” as a way to tell their story to the community in fun and beneficial ways.
According to the website for National Night Out, the movement “is an annual community-building campaign that promotes police-community partnerships and neighborhood camaraderie.” The event, held this year on August 4 and on the first Tuesday of August annually, exists “to make our neighborhoods safer, more caring places to live.”
Seventeen cities across the Mountain State host the event. In North central West Virginia, this includes Clarksburg, Bridgeport, Morgantown, Fairmont, Weston, and Glenville. Shinnston has participated in past years as well.
After last year’s successful event, WBOY quoted Lieutenant Dan Messenger from the Clarksburg Police Department as sharing that the “idea . . . is to bridge the gap between the community and law enforcement so that when children especially are encountered with first responders, they don’t panic., they realize we’re not there to hurt them.”
Attendees can enjoy a fair style atmosphere with games, family-friendly activities, food, giveaways and prizes, public safety demonstrations, and tips on preventing and/or avoiding crime. Bridgeport’s also includes a mechanical bull, slides, and even an obstacle course with fireworks capping off the night.
In the region, Clarksburg, Bridgeport, and Fairmont all will participate for 2026. Clarksburg’s will take place at VA Memorial Park on Tuesday Aug 4 from 5 to 8 p.m.
The Bridgeport Police Department will hold their National Night Out at The Bridge, kicking off the fun at 6 p.m. Both Bridgeport City and Harrison County Sheriff’s Department officers and deputies will be on hand.
“Strong relationships of mutual trust between police and the communities they serve,” notes a Department of Justice website on “Importance of Police-Community Relationships . . .” are “critical to maintaining public safety and effective policing.”
It adds that “community members’ willingness to trust the police depends on whether they believe that police actions reflect community values.” One of the suggested steps towards better relations includes “maintain focus on the importance of collaboration and be visible in the community.”
