The Facts About Gun Violence

• 4,223 young people ages 0-19 were killed by gunfire- one every two hours, nearly 12 every day in the U.S. in 1997.
• 2,580 were murdered by gunfire.
• 1,262 committed suicide using a gun-more than three every day.
• 306 died from an unintentional or "accidental shooting.
• 630 young people killed by guns were under the age of 15.
• 191 young people killed by guns were under the age of 10.
• 84 young people were under the age of 5.
• American children under 15 are 12 times more likely to die from gunfire than children in 25 other industrialized countries combined.
• Gun homicide is the fourth leading cause of death for young people 10-14 years of age.
• Gun homicide is the second leading cause of death for young people 15-24.
• There were a total of 32,436 people killed by guns in the U.S. in 1997.
• 17,566 were gun suicides.
• 13,552 were gun homicides
• 981 were unintentional or "accidental" shootings.
• 367 were shooting deaths of undetermined intent.
• In 1997, firearm injuries were the second leading cause of injury death for all ages and for young people aged 15-24. Motor vehicle injuries were the leading cause of injury death for all ages and for young people 15-24 years of age in 1997.
• The risk of suicide or homicide is twice as high for individuals with a family history of registered handgun purchase, than for those without such a history.
• Suicide is nearly 5 times more likely to occur in a household with a gun than in a household without a gun.
• The presence of a gun in the home triples the risk of homicide in the home.
• Guns were used in approximately 7 out of every 10 murders in the U.S. in 1997. Handguns were used in 53% of all murders committed with a firearm.
• Americans own nearly 200 million guns, 65 million of which are handguns.
• One-quarter of adults in the United States own a gun and only about one in six Americans (16%) own a handgun. That means that five out of six Americans do not own a handgun.