USA - California. A report showing that homicides and other violent crimes continued to drop statewide in 2014

A report this week by the California Department of Justice showing that homicides and other violent crimes continued to drop statewide in 2014 also gave a look at the nature of killings last year. Overall, 1,697 people were slain - a 3 % decline from 2013 and the lowest number since 1971. In 1993, a staggering 4,095 people were killed in the Golden State. Gender and race: 82 % of those killed were male. In cases where a victim's race was known, 41 % were Hispanic, 30 % were black and 21 % were white. Age: Hispanic and black victims tended to be younger, with nearly 1/2 between 18 and 29. White victims were a bit older on average, with 57 % over 40. Males were more likely than females to be killed by a stranger (38 % of cases versus 16 %). But women were far more likely than men to be slain by a spouse (19 % to 2 %). And more than 57 % of female victims were killed in their own home. More than 70 % of killings (in which the weapon was known) were accomplished with a firearm. Knives were used in 15 % of cases. Authorities said 30 % of killings with a known motive were gang-related, 28 % traced to an "unspecified argument," 9 % owed to domestic violence and 7 % stemmed from robberies. More than 88 % of those arrested for murder were male. Nearly 7 % were kids under 18. Executions have been on hold in California since 2006, but people are still being given the death penalty. In 2014, there were 13 - all men and primarily from Southern California. 5 police officers, all men, were slain on the job in 2014, slightly more than average. 4 were gunned down, and 1 was intentionally run over. The Department of Justice reported that cops killed 116 people statewide in 2014 in cases that were ruled justifiable. All but 6 of those killed were men. Nearly 45 % were Hispanic, 33 % were white and 16 % were black.