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PRESENTATION

AN ANALYTICAL ASSESSMENT OF POLICE KILLINGS IN SOUTH AFRICA

by Mpho Kwinika, President of the South African Policing Union (SAPU)

September 2019

1. INTRODUCTION

Attacks on and the murder of police officials remains an emotional issue in spite of a general

understanding that policing is a dangerous occupation. We see this in the individual and

collective public reaction and the general condemnation every time a police official is

murdered irrespective of the circumstances of the incident. We also continue to see this

reaction notwithstanding the fact that police murders have decreased by 68% since the

advent of democracy in 1994, from 265 murders to 85 in 2017/18.

Public reaction and condemnation of police murders can probably also be linked to a

perception that if the police themselves are not safe, how can we rely on them to keep us

safe. In the same vein therefore an attack on the police is seen indirectly as an attack on us,

the public. Consequently, it could be argued that in order for us to be safe we also need to

contribute towards improving the safety of our police.

In this regard it is interesting to note the many similarities in relation to police killings in the

United States of America (USA), a country known for its so-called cop killings. According to a

comprehensive study published in March 2019 the USA also experienced a decline of more

than 80% in what they term 'felonious' deaths of police officials, from 52 per 100 000 in 1970

to an average of 10 per 100 000 in the last five years.1 They achieved this decline in police

murders over a period of more than 40 years whereas we, in spite of a decrease of 68% over

a period of 24 years, are still at 56 police murders per 100 000. Given these ratios it could be

argued that a South African police official is almost 6 times more likely to be murdered than

his or her counterpart in the USA.

The American study also cites an important and quite relevant observation from a 2015-

report by the USA President's Task Force on 21st Century Policing:

The “bulletproof cop” does not exist. The officers who protect us must also be protected

against incapacitating physical, mental, and emotional health problems as well as against

the hazards of their job. Their wellness and safety are crucial for them, their colleagues,

and their agencies, as well as the well‐being of the communities they serve.2

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In the explorative analysis that follows the presentation will look briefly at some of the more

significant interventions over the past 24 years aimed at reducing and preventing police

murders in South Africa, as well as an assessment of the current situation. This will be

followed by an analysis of suggested and speculative comparisons of possible links between

rising crime rates, increases in police numbers and police killings.

2. HISTORIC OVERVIEW OF INTERVENTIONS TO REDUCE POLICE MURDERS

The 24-year history of the South African Police Service (SAPS) was characterised by ever-

present concerns about police safety and sporadic interventions to curb the killing of police

members. These interventions were led by SAPS management in the form of new instructions,

changes to training programmes, the issuing of bullet-proof vests, and so forth. Some of these

interventions will be dealt with in more detail below but two major events in this regard

require specific reference, i.e. the establishment of the National Multi-Disciplinary

Committee (MDC) in 1999 and the Summit Against Police Killings in 2011. These events

produced a wealth of research and enhanced our understanding of the reasons for the

attacks, the weaknesses that allow it and possible solutions.

As background to the discussion that follows it is necessary to present the annual number of

police officials murdered in South Africa since 1994 (Figure 1). In spite of the apparent

decrease, in particular during the first 12 years, these figures show the harsh reality of police

murders in this country and also provides some perspective to the discussion.

Figure 1: Police officials killed: 1994 - 2018 (general trend)

2.1. National Multi-Disciplinary Committee (MDC) - 1999

The persistent and extremely high number of police killings became one of the most

disturbing features of post-1994 democratic South Africa. The number of murders fluctuated

between 265 and 237 during the five years between 1994 and 1998, and only dropped below

265

240 222

244 237

187178

139150

10894 95

108 107 105 10193

81 84 77 86 7983 85

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200 in 1999/2000 when 187 police murders were recorded. At that time there were

approximately 100 000 police officials in the SAPS and therefore, also expressed as a ratio,

187 police officials per 100 000 were murdered in the 1999/2000 reporting period. This is

more than 3 times the current rate in South Africa and more than 18 times the current rate

in the USA.

In an article by Professor Anthony Minnaar* in 2003, at the time attached to the Institute for

Human Rights and Criminal Justice at the Technikon Southern Africa, the overall perception

amongst police officials was that the SAPS was extremely reluctant to do anything about the

violent attacks on them.3 This perception gained further momentum when then Deputy

President Thabo Mbeki, during the political campaigning for the 1999 general elections, was

reported in the media as having said at a rally in the Western Cape that the murder of police

officials can be attributed largely to the fact that they were corrupt and involved with

criminals. This was subsequently denied by his office, but the damage was done and the South

African Policing Union (SAPU) as well as other members of the SAPS expressed their

indignation at these remarks.4 The general feeling was that there was no evidence to link the

attacks on police officials to any allegations of criminal conduct by them.

The outcry that followed Deputy President Mbeki's alleged remarks came at a time when

there were renewed and widespread concerns about the ongoing high number of police

murders and as well as the reasons why the police were being attacked. In response to these

concerns the then Minister of Safety and Security, Sidney Mufamadi, in May 1999 appointed

a National Multi-Disciplinary Committee (MDC), with a Research Sub-Committee [hereafter

referred to as research committee] to investigate the reasons behind the attacks on members

of the police. The research committee was also instructed to investigate what could be done

to improve the protection and safety of all police officials.5

In order to answer some of the research questions such as reasons for the attacks the

research committee applied various methods including focus-group interviews. These

interviews provided a number of opinions and perceptions about the reasons for the attacks,

and some of the more pertinent reasons are listed here:6

Inadequate training: This has much to do with firearm training, proficiency and skills,

including the handling of firearms during arrests, crime scene situations or the lack of

safeguarding of firearms.

Poor equipment and shortage of bullet-proof vests: The shortage of bullet-proof vests

and/or the type of bullet-proof vests (too heavy, cumbersome and uncomfortable) often

leads to a situation where a member does not have any kind of body armour for

protection.

* Professor Minnaar was also a member of the research sub-committee of the National Multi-Disciplinary

Committee (MDC).

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Off-duty attacks and killings: Off-duty police members often visit places of

entertainment such as shebeens where they become intoxicated or are less alert and

become easy targets for the theft or robbery of their firearms.

Theft or robbery of firearms: Police officials are known in their communities and also

highly visible (in uniform and in marked vehicles). They are therefore easily identifiable

and known to have firearms.

Attitude of criminals: Criminals have no respect for the law or for the police and have

little fear that they will be caught or successfully prosecuted.

The law is not a deterrent: Even where criminals were convicted the sentences were too

lenient to act as a deterrent.

Corruption: Corruption amongst police members was seen as a contributing factor but

at a lesser level. This, for example, referred to police officials that organised the killing

of colleagues when they perceived them as a threat such as exposing their corrupt

activities or when police officials were directly involved with criminals.

In addition to the focus-group interviews the research committee also interviewed a number

of incarcerated police murderers in order to establish the circumstances surrounding the

attacks and to determine better means of protecting police officials.7 According to these

interviews the largest number of respondents (42%) indicated that they attacked the police

in order to avoid arrest; 31% of the respondents said that they attacked the police directly for

the purpose of freeing prisoners or to rob the official's firearm; and 12% said that they

attacked the police during the commission of a crime.

Based on their research the Multi-Disciplinary Committee (MDC) was able to make a range of

recommendations aimed at addressing the reasons for the attacks on police members and

the identified weaknesses that were exploited by criminals. One of their first

recommendations was that bullet-proof vests be purchased in sufficient numbers to be issued

to operational police members especially in high risk areas. This was augmented by the

following steps that were immediately implemented:8

A standing reward of R250 000 was offered to any person for information that led to the

arrest and conviction of a suspect responsible for the murder of a police official.

An awareness campaign was launched within the SAPS.

A victim profile was circulated (particularly relevant to members in the high-risk group -

26-35 years old) that would enable members to take specific safety precautions.

A communication strategy was launched both internally and externally through which

the Personal Safety Guidelines were circulated.

All members in 'hot-spot' areas within high-risk provinces such as Gauteng, KwaZulu-

Natal, Eastern Cape and Western Cape, were to be issued with bullet-proof vests and be

compelled to wear it while on duty.

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Members operationally deployed in 'hot-spot' areas were to receive Special Weapons

and Tactics (SWAT) training.

An evaluation by Security and Advisory Services within the SAPS was launched

immediately to investigate the security levels of all police facilities in high-risk areas with

the aim of upgrading the security at these premises.

In January 2000 the national commissioner of police established a Directorate: Police

Safety within the Division: Crime Prevention (now Visible Policing) at national head

office. The directorate, which exists to this day, was created with the specific

responsibility to develop and maintain the implementation of preventative measures

aimed at the protection of members.

This was followed by a range of other recommended changes over the short and longer-term

which included the issuing of safety guidelines and instructions for the development of

provincial police safety plans in accordance with the guidelines. In addition, the following

targeted interventions were implemented:

The establishment of a Logistics Working Group to evaluate the equipment used by

members, including firearms, body armour, handcuffs, etc.

The creation of a working group to investigate personal issues such as salaries, medical

benefits, danger allowances, etc.

The tasking of the Trauma Working Group to activate a debriefing process and, with the

assistance of the SAPS helping professions, to develop specific stress management

programmes.

The development of a Tactical Policing Training course for new recruits and a three-day

Preventative Survival Tactics course for members already at police stations.

2.2. Summit Against Police Killings - 2011

The Summit Against Police Killings was held on 8 July 2011 in Boksburg. It came at a time

when measures resulting from the National Multi-Disciplinary Committee (MDC) were

beginning to show a meaningful impact on police killings. At the time of the MDC's

establishment in 1999 there were 187 police murders and 11 years later in 2011 it had

declined by 50% to 93 murders.

So, the question then is why have a summit to discuss police killings when the existing

interventions were showing good results? The answer appears to be twofold: Firstly,

compared to international standards 93 police murders were still extremely high and

completely unacceptable. At 60 murders per 100 000 police officials the rate of police

murders in 2011 was also almost double that of the general population which at the time

stood at 31. Secondly, in the words of then Minister of Police, Nathi Mthethwa, in his

welcoming speech, the ongoing focus on police safety is a 'continuation of our crusade'

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against police killings. According to Mthethwa the high level of police murders 'affect morale

whilst it also traumatizes colleagues and families'.

The summit brought together a wide range of interest groups that included not only the police

but also researchers and other academics, police unions, business against crime, civic

organisations, community police forums, the Independent Complaints Directorate (which in

2012 was replaced by the Independent Police Investigative Directorate), the Private Security

Industry Regulatory Authority, interfaith organisations, youth organisations and NGO's. All

those present signed a pledge 'to eradicate attacks on police members'. In terms of the pledge

the signatories committed themselves 'to participate in finding solutions to address attacks

on members of our police service ... [and] to intensify our efforts to eradicate such attacks.'

After a lengthy debate the summit eventually adopted a so-called 10-Point Programme of

Action which is summarised as follows:9

the need for a national awareness campaign, utilising different media platforms and

partnerships to make the killing of police officials everybody’s duty and concern;

the establishment of a Multi-Disciplinary [Safety] Committee within the SAPS to

effectively manage investigations on killing of police, counselling of families, training and

other operational aspects;

the review of the 2000 Ministerial Task Team findings on the causes of police murders

including training, the usage of bullet-resistant vests and the deployment of police

members;

the involvement of other departments within the JCPS Cluster to look into harsh

punishment for criminals who kill police officials;

the psychological and human resource support for families and colleagues of members

that were killed or murdered;

the improvement of the training of police officials;

the strengthening of partnerships with researchers;

the hosting of provincial summits aimed at engaging different provincial role players and

stakeholders;

the review of the SAPS Annual Commemoration for fallen police heroes to involve all in

society; and

to fly national flags at police stations at half-mast in honour of killed police officials.

The SAPS' Annual Report for 2011/12 provides a first brief progress report on the

implementation of the 10-Point Programme of Action, inter alia that a Multi-disciplinary

Police Safety Committee was established to ensure that the Programme of Action receives

dedicated attention.10 According to the progress report the SAPS were able to:

enhance the reporting structure on police killings;

draft guidelines to sensitise police officers on preventative measures;

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negotiate with independent researches to establish a formal partnership;

identify risks and drafted a risk mitigation plan;

distribute safety hints to create awareness and sensitise members on their safety; and

conduct a docket analysis to determine the trends and tendencies on police killings in

order to implement effective and appropriate preventative measures.

Other key activity areas in the 10-Point Plan were at that stage still being planned and most

of these were eventually implemented and reported on in the Annual Reports that followed.

From these reports and the many ad-hoc instructions over the following years it was obvious

that much of what were already identified as important for police safety was further refined

and improved upon, i.e. training, awareness, bullet proof vests, etc.

The National Multi-disciplinary Police Safety Committee continued with its efforts to improve

police safety and in the 2014/15 Annual Report of the SAPS they were for example able to

report that an Information Management Framework was implemented which requires that

incidents where police members were killed or attacked has to be reported within 12 hours

for analysis and to further inform preventative measures.11 In addition, they conducted

docket analyses of relevant cases; compiled directives and guidelines to sensitise police

officials regarding preventative measures, including safety hints; and developed a pocket

safety guide.

Some insights into the analytical work performed by the Police Safety Committee was

provided by then Minister of Police, Nkosinathi Nhleko, in a statement to the National

Assembly on 10 September 2015. In his statement Minister Nhleko pointed out that 71% of

police officials murdered were killed when they were responding to public 'needs':

45.7% of police killed last year were attending to complaints (robbery, hijacking

and cash-in-transit);

11.4% while affecting or during evading of an arrest;

5.7% conducting searches of persons and motor vehicles;

5.7% pursuing suspects;

5.7% while attending to domestic violence complaints;

2.9% escorting suspects to police cells and;

2.9% were victims of attack on the police stations.

So-called random killings accounted for 14.2%.

It must be concluded that the continued attention of the Police Safety Committee to police

safety has shown significant and positive results although it is concerning that in the last

decade they appear to have reached some sort of ceiling (Figures 1 & 2) where the number

of police murders remained at more or less the same worrying level.

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3. CURRENT POSITION In the last two years there has been some new developments in relation to police safety which

is encouraging and which, if properly implemented, may further impact on the number of

police officers murdered every year.

In the SAPS Annual Report 2017/18 reference is made to the implementation of the National

Police Safety Plan: Back to Basics in all provinces,12 but this plan now seems to have been

replaced by the Police Safety Strategy of May 2019. The Police Safety Strategy is dated 23

May 2019 and its stated aim is 'to intensify and accelerate integrated efforts to address

attacks and unnatural deaths of SAPS employees'. It is to be reviewed every three years.

The strategy is premised on the following six pillars, each with a number of priorities:

Governance:

o To implement national Instructions/Directives

o To implement Provincial Police Safety Plans

Proactive interventions:

o Operational readiness

o Community mobilisation

o To conduct research

o To implement an information management framework

o To enhance skills development

o To ensure availability of protective and safety equipment

o To ensure safe and secure state transportation for employees to and from work

o To promote enhanced availability of tactical information/intelligence

o To establish and maintain partners

o To implement a communication plan (impacting on all pillars)

Safety of police stations, buildings and infrastructure:

o Assess, review and enhance the safety requirements of existing police stations,

buildings and premises, including new structures

Reactive interventions:

o To prioritise cases of attacks on the police through a dedicated investigation

capability to restore confidence in the CJS and serve as a deterrent

o Effective investigation

o Effective intelligence

o Enhanced criminal justice

Redress and support interventions:

o To ensure employee support and assistance

Monitoring and evaluation:

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o To improve the governance framework

o To address non-compliance with national instructions and standing orders

Two other important features of this strategy must be pointed out: Firstly, it captures and refines most of the measures/interventions that were adopted and implemented since 1999 in a single document (strategy); and secondly, similar to the approach highlighted in the American study, it acknowledges the fact that police officials are lost not only to violent crime such as murder but also to non-criminal activity in the line of duty such as vehicle accidents. In that sense the Police Safety Strategy is aimed at enhancing police safety in all circumstances where officials may be exposed to risk. This strategy is another crucial development towards advancing the 'crusade' to save police lives and deserves all our support. 4. AN ANALYSIS OF TRENDS AND POSSIBLE CORRELATIONS The final analysis is about the numbers and what it tells us. This analysis is based on a comparison of the number of police murders over the last 24 years with the number of police officials in the SAPS over the same period. In addition, police murder trends are also compared with general murder trends in South Africa. The intention with these comparisons is to see if there are any clear correlations between the various trends and to determine whether and to what extent the safety measures as mentioned in this paper have contributed to the decline in police killings. Figure 2: Police officials killed: 1994 - 2018 (different trends)

The numbers shown in Figure 1 shows that police murders in South Africa decreased substantially (60%) between 1994 and 2018. However, the same numbers also point to an intriguing change in the downward trend. In the first 12 years since 1994, the decline was

265

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244 237

187178

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10894 95

108 107 105 10193

81 84 7786 79 83 85

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quite dramatic but in the last 12 years, since 2006, the trend slowed to a decline of 'only' 21% (Figure 2). There was also a strange periodic increase in the number of murders between 2006/07 and 2009/10 (highlighted in green) which remains unexplained. However, the numbers also appear to show that the drop in police killings have reached some sort of ceiling. The American study shows a similar trend to which they refer as reaching a 'plateau'. This phenomenon also warrants further consideration. Figure 3: Number of SAPS members: 2002/03 - 2017/18

Quite often questions are asked about the relevance and impact of safety measures implemented by the SAPS to protect its members. It is also argued that the trends in police killings are largely influenced by trends in violent crime in general and by the number of officials deployed. The rationale seems to be that because of the high risk of policing any

Figure 4: Growth in number of SAPS members compared to number murdered

102737 106177 107791 114241 121938137079 144543 150513 154073 156721 154792 153116 150950 151834 151651 150791

102737

150791

Growth in number of police officials: 2002/03 - 2017/18

150

85

Number of police officials murdered: 2002/03 -2017/18

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increases in violent crime would increase the risks to policing and also that increases in the number of police would similarly increase the number of police killings since there would be more police exposed to danger. The SAPS have increased the number of police officials by almost 47%, from 102 737 to 150 791 between 2002/03 and 2017/18 (Figure 3). But as shown in Figure 4 there does not appear to be any obvious correlation between the growth in police numbers over the same reporting period. In fact, although police numbers increased by 47% the number of police murders decreased by 43% from 150 murders in 2002/03 to 85 in 2017/18 (Figure 4). The argument about a possible correlation between police murders and the general murder rate also fails. Between 2002/03 and 2011/12 the general murder figure decreased by almost 28%, from 21 553 to 1 5554, but thereafter increased by almost 31% to 20 336 in 2017/18 (Figure 5). Compared to the two distinct trends in relation to murder in general, the murder of police officials declined by 43% over the same reporting period in spite of to some extent 'levelling out' over the last seven years (Figure 5). Figure 5: Trends for total RSA murders and SAPS members murdered

At this stage it is quite useful to look at more or less similar findings in the American study cited in this paper:13

One factor that does not seem to have played a clear role is violent crime at the national level. The violent crime rate increased steadily and significantly from 1970 through the mid‐1990s. At the same time, however, the number of officer deaths declined significantly. The violent crime rate began dropping significantly in the mid‐1990s and that trend persisted through 2015. During the same period, the number of officer deaths began to plateau. In simple terms, if violent crime is a proxy measure of the dangerousness of the environment in which police work, it does not seem to correlate well with actual dangerousness of the profession (measured as officer deaths) at the national level.

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According to the American study, 'numerous factors' have likely caused the decline in police

deaths (inclusive of both violent crime and non-violent crime such as duty-related vehicle

accidents) in the USA since the 1970's. Most important of these were improvements in body

armour enhanced training, better policy, better supervision, and technological advances, as

well as advancements in trauma care.14 The South African experience appear to be quite

similar but at the same time it poses the challenge to further improve on current practices

and to add innovative interventions to further reduce police killings.

5. CONCLUSION

The aim of this paper was to show the extent of police murders in South Africa and to provide

a short historical overview of what was done over the past two decades to reduce this

scourge. The relevant South African numbers presented in this paper and the trends an

tendencies it shows clearly supports police claims that their interventions have made a

meaningful impact towards improving police safety. Concomitantly, it shows that there is no

evidence to support arguments that there is a direct link between increases in violent crime

and police killings or between increases in police numbers and police killings.

The current police murder rate of 56 per 100 000 compared to the general murder rate of

35,2 in South Africa, shows that our police are still almost twice as likely to be killed than

other citizens. But even worse than that, it shows that a South African police official is almost

six times more likely to be murdered than his or her American counterpart.

What remains is a focus on what worked over the years and what did not, and to identify

those measures that need further attention. The consolidated approach of the recently

launched Police Safety Strategy of 2019 could be the vehicle that breaks through the current

'ceiling' or 'plateau' and therefore needs all our support.

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Notes

1 Michael D White, Lisa M Dario & John A Shjarback, 2019, Assessing dangerousness in policing, Criminology & Public Policy, Journal of the American Society of Criminology, Volume 18, Issue 1, 24 March. Available at https://doi.org/10.1111/1745-9133.12408 (accessed 17 July 2019), 15.

2 Ibid., 1.

3 Minnaar A, 2003, The murder of members of the South African Police Service: Some findings on common causes and practical preventative steps, Acta Criminologica: Southern African Journal of Criminology, Criminological and Victimological Society of Southern Africa (CRIMSA), Volume 16, Issue 3, January. Available at https://hdl.handle.net/10520/EJC28788 (accessed 19 July 2019), 1.

4 Ibid.

5 Ibid.

6 Ibid., 6-9.

7 Ibid., 12-13. These interviews, which were conducted during January and February 2000, are discussed in a little more detail by Professor Herman Conradie, Department of Criminology, University of South Africa and also a member of the research sub-committee of the National Multi-Disciplinary Committee (MDC), in an unpublished and undated report titled 'Killing to escape arrest: The primary motive for murdering police officials in South Africa'.

8 Ibid., 18-19.

9 South African Police Service, Annual Report 2011/2012, Department of Police. Pretoria: Government Printer, 80.

10 Ibid., 81.

11 South African Police Service, Annual Report 2014/2015, Department of Police. Pretoria: Government Printer, 164.

12 South African Police Service, Annual Report 2017/2018, Department of Police. Pretoria: Government Printer, 113.

13 Michael D White, et al, 2019, 21.

14 Ibid.