“Between 1999 and 2013 in the US, there were 5,551 deaths by legal intervention,” the authors reported. Nationwide, mortality rates by legal intervention now stand at 0.24 per 100,000 individuals among Blacks, 0.11 among Whites, and 0.05 among Asians.

Rates are higher in certain states. In Nevada, California, and Maryland, mortality rates among blacks eclipse 1 per 100,000 individuals, making them comparable to the death rates for malnutrition, asthma, and accidental drowning.

The two districts with the highest mortality rates from police intervention are Riverside County, California and Baltimore Maryland. Respectively, 2.4 and 1.82 out of every 100,000 blacks are killed by law enforcement in those areas.

Police killings increased between 1999 and 2013 despite a 29.4% drop in violent crime over the same period.