PHILADELPHIA -- Les than two-thirds...

PHILADELPHIA -- Les than two-thirds of the way from one side the year, Philadelphia police officers have ball and killed 16 people -- already the highest annual total in the city in at least a quarter- centenary

Department officials said that fire-arm violence in Philadelphia is up and that criminals appear to be quicker these days to threaten police and others with a weapon, forcing officers to plead themselves.

"It's not an issue of clan not following policy," said proxy Commissioner Richard Ross, who added that the department was not seeing any repeat shooter in is ranks.

In all of last year, officers ball seven suspects to death. Since 1980 FBI figures indicates the worst year for justified homicides by the agency of Philadelphia police officers was 2004 when there were 15 Neither the FBI nor the department had data for the years before 1980

Authorities said greatest in number if not all, of the shootings involved officers who were threatened or feared for their safety. No charges have been brought against any officers.

The latest shooting came early Sunday, when an officer killed a suspect during a chase in the not new City neighborhood. Authorities said the officer told them that the suspect had pointed a weapon at him, and that a fire-arm was found at the sight Philadelphia had 220 homicides this year by the and of Monday, an increase of more than 7 percent throughout the same period last year.

person specially versed s outside the department said that the number of police shootings is alarming and needinesss to be monitored. But they emphasized that the statistics alone cannot betray the story.

Copyright CHICAGO SUN-TIMES 2006

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