Gun Violence Statistics

Gun accidents and violence cause tens of thousands of deaths each year. The statistics and charts below statistics provide a granular look into the number of deaths caused by guns.

GUN DEATHS

There is an average of 36,000 Americans who are annually killed by guns. That’s an average of just over 100 deaths per day. Gun deaths in 2017 totaled at 39,773.

GUN DEATH BREAKDOWN

Gun deaths occur in a variety of ways. This can include homicide, suicide, unintentional deaths, accidental injuries and law enforcement deaths.

Let’s review the 37,603 annual gun deaths each year.

61% are gun suicides (22,926)
35.6% are gun homicides (13,380)
1.4% are law enforcement shootings (510)
1.3% are unintentional shootings (478)
0.8% are unknown (310)

GUN DEATHS STATE BY STATE

Gun death rates vary considerably from state to state. Approximately 12 out of 100,000 people are killed from guns in the United States. Alaska has the highest gun death rate. They average almost 25 deaths for every 100,000 residents. Hawaii has the lowest gun death rate. They average two gun deaths for every 100,000 residents.

GLOBAL GUN DEATHS

The US accounts for 35% of global firearm suicides and 9% of global firearm homicides.

United States gun homicide rate is 25 times higher compared to high-income countries.
US gun suicide rate is 10 times higher compared to high-income countries.

GUN SUICIDE

The majority of gun deaths are due to suicide. Firearms are used in 51% of America’s suicide deaths. 85% of US suicide attempts with a firearm end in death.

GUN HOMICIDE

Approximately one-third of all gun deaths are from homicide. Firearms are used in over 70% of all homicides. Gun homicides are primarily focused in US cities. Around half of all gun homicides took place in city and urban areas which contains 25% of the total US population.

UNINTENTIONAL SHOOTING DEATHS

Unintentional shootings account for 1.3% of gun deaths. Most of the unintentional shooting deaths occur with individual under the age of 24. Older Americans are much less likely to die from an unintentional firearm death. The majority of deaths from older age groups are self-inflicted.

URBAN GUN HOMICIDES

Black males contain 52% of all firearm homicide victims. Black Americans are 10 times more likely to be victims of a gun homicide than white Americans.

KIDS & GUNS

Three million US children are exposed to gun violence every year. There are 1,500 children killed each year with firearms. This is the 2nd leading cause of death among children overall.

DOMESTIC VIOLENCE WITH GUNS

Each year, there are 600 American women who are shot to death by a partner. When analyzing all of the US women murdered with a firearm, 50% are killed by an intimate partner. When an abuser has access to a gun, Domestic violence victims are five times more likely to be killed by their abuser if they have access to a gun.

MASS SHOOTINGS

A mass shooting is defined when 4 or more individuals are injured or killed with a gun. Mass shootings average once a day. Overall, mass shootings are only a fraction of all gun deaths as they comprise of less than 1% of all firearm deaths.