--- description: Ebola came in second title: Shootings by Police Voted Top Story of 2014 in AP Poll image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2791bc9f9aa0a5b3/698770695f570fd89fb14608/ap889054630559.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Shootings by Police Voted Top Story of 2014 in AP Poll  by [Denver Nicks](/author/denver-nicks/)  ## Denver Nicks Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Dec 22, 2014 3:43 PM CUT  Demonstrators march in New York, Saturday, Dec. 13, 2014, during the Justice for All rally and march. In the past three weeks, grand juries have decided not to indict officers in the chokehold death of Eric Garner in New York and the fatal shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo. The decisions have unleashed demonstrations and questions about police conduct and whether local prosecutors are the best choice for investigating police. Demonstrators march in New York, Saturday, Dec. 13, 2014, during the Justice for All rally and march. In the past three weeks, grand juries have decided not to indict officers in the chokehold death of Eric Garner in New York and the fatal shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Mo. The decisions have unleashed demonstrations and questions about police conduct and whether local prosecutors are the best choice for investigating police.John Minchillo—AP  by [Denver Nicks](/author/denver-nicks/)  ## Denver Nicks Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Dec 22, 2014 3:43 PM CUT The killing of unarmed black men Michael Brown and Eric Garner by police officers was voted the top news story of 2014 in a survey of news directors and editors around the country. Police killings, and the federal investigations and civil unrest they unleashed, came out on top from among the 85 votes cast with 22 first-place votes, in the Associated Press poll. Voters placed the Ebola outbreak in West Africa as second biggest, and the rise of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria third biggest story of the year. The poll was conducted before the U.S. announced it would re-establish diplomatic relations with Cuba. These, in order, are the top ten stories of the year as determined by the [AP poll](http://bigstory.ap.org/article/ad250438af4e4fae95d7e41f537661ef/ap-poll-police-killings-blacks-voted-top-story-2014 "undefined"). 1\. Police Killings 2\. Ebola Outbreak 3\. Islamic State 4\. U.S. Elections and the GOP Wave 5\. Obamacare Ongoing Rollout 6\. Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 7\. Obama’s Executive Action on Immigration 8\. Conflict in Ukraine 9\. Gay Marriage Wave 10\. Veterans Affairs Scandal ### Witness Protesters Taking Over the Streets After the Eric Garner Grand Jury Decision  A group of protesters rally against a grand jury's decision not to indict the police officer involved in the death of Eric Garner occupy the eastbound traffic lanes of the Brooklyn Bridge in New York City in the early morning hours of Dec. 4, 2014. Jason DeCrow—AP  Protestors block 15th Street near Pennsylvania Avenue to protest the Staten Island grand jury's decision not to indict officer Daniel Pantaleo in the Eric Garner chokehold case in Washington on Dec. 3, 2014. Jim Lo Scalzo—EPA  Demonstrators march through the streets of New York City on Dec. 3, 2014. Andrew Burton—Getty Images  Regina Bates speaks during a demonstration in Oakland, Calif. on Dec. 3, 2014. Elijah Nouvelage—Getty Images  Police stand guard on the West Side highway as protesters block traffic in New York City on Dec. 3, 2014. Shannon Stapleton—Reuters  Anwar Thurston, 36, joined demonstrators who gathered to protest the Eric Garner grand jury decision during a Christmas Tree lighting ceremony at City Hall in Philadelphia on Dec. 3, 2014. Mark Makela—Getty Images  A demonstrator cries while gathering to protest the Eric Garner grand jury decision during a Christmas Tree lighting ceremony at City Hall in Philadelphia on Dec. 3, 2014. Mark Makela—Getty Images  Demonstrators block traffic on Highway I-395 in Washington on Dec. 3, 2014. T.J. Kirkpatrick—Getty Images  Protestors lay down in Grand Central Station during a protest in New York City on Dec. 3, 2014. Timothy A. Clary—AFP/Getty Images  People take part in a protest against the grand jury decision on the death of Eric Garner in midtown Manhattan in New York City on Dec. 3, 2014. Eric Thayer—Reuters  Protesters raise their arms and chant at police officers in Times Square in New York City on Dec. 3, 2014. Caitlin Ochs—Polaris  Demonstrators march in protest on the streets of St. Louis on Dec. 3, 2014. Michael B. Thomas—AFP/Getty Images  Police officers block protesters from marching up a highway entrance ramp near Times Square in New York City on Dec. 3, 2014. Seth Wenig—AP  A man holding a child walks with protesters as they march past Radio City Music Hall in New York City on Dec. 3, 2014. Adrees Latif—Reuters  Atlanta Police face off with protesters blocking Spring Street in Atlanta on Dec. 3, 2014. Erik S. Lesser—EPA  A demonstrator stands next to a makeshift memorial where Eric Garner died during an arrest in July in the Staten Island borough of New York City on Dec. 3, 2014. Shannon Stapleton—Reuters ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3643962/police-killings-top-story-ap-poll/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3643962/police-killings-top-story-ap-poll/"},"headline":"Shootings by Police Voted Top Story of 2014 in AP Poll","datePublished":"2014-12-22T15:43:04.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:06:32.692Z","description":"Ebola came in second","url":"https://time.com/3643962/police-killings-top-story-ap-poll/","keywords":["Crime","ISIS","News","Journalists","ebola","Associated Press","Ferguson topic"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2791bc9f9aa0a5b3/698770695f570fd89fb14608/ap889054630559.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Denver Nicks","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/denver-nicks/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt2791bc9f9aa0a5b3/698770695f570fd89fb14608/ap889054630559.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Killings By Police March","caption":"Killings By Police March","creditText":"John Minchillo—AP","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3643962/police-killings-top-story-ap-poll/","name":"Shootings by Police Voted Top Story of 2014 in AP Poll"}}]}] ```