Report: Norwegian Police Fired Just Two Shots in 2014

A couple years ago, we discussed how police in Iceland killed a man for the first time in history and compared that remarkable record to our own level of police shootings. This week we have another stark contrast out of Norway where police fired only two shots in 2014. They brandished firearms on just 42 occasions in 2014. Their highest rate was only 75 such incidents in 2005 and 2010.

In 2011 when the country was faced with the Utøya terror attacks,the Norwegian police only fired one shot.

Clearly, there are major differences in population and crime rates, but the United States has been criticized for a greater use of lethal force in some circumstances. Even for a small state, the firing of just two shots in a year would be considered astonishing in the United States.