FBI designates 40 shootings in 2020 as active shooter incidents
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has designated 40 shootings in 2020 as active shooter incidents. The FBI defines an active shooter as one or more individuals actively engaged in killing or attempting to kill people in a populated area. Implicit in this definition is the shooter’s use of a firearm. The active aspect of the definition inherently implies the ongoing nature of an incident, and thus the potential for the response to affect the outcome.
Although 2020 witnessed the highest rate of active shooter incidents for the period 2000 to 2020, casualties were significantly lower. There could be several reasons for the sharp decline in casualty counts.