One in four children killed by a gun in the United States dies from an unintentional shooting. These deaths are often linked to unsafe storage, with over half of gun owners in a recent year reporting a firearm stored loaded or unlocked. Research shows that policies and education focused on safe storage can significantly reduce this risk.
Key Takeaways
- 0.52 firearm deaths per 100,000 population occurred in the United States in 2022 (ages all, firearms)
- From 2010 to 2021, firearm mortality among children and youth declined in some periods but remained elevated overall; 2019–2021 showed persistent high levels (trend reported in peer-reviewed national analysis)
- In 2022, 20 U.S. states plus DC had child access prevention (CAP) laws or similar policies that can reduce access-related unintentional shootings (policy inventory count)
- A JAMA Pediatrics study reported that implementation of CAP laws was associated with a reduction in firearm fatalities among children (effect size reported as relative change)
- Safe storage counseling programs have produced measurable reductions in child access behavior; one randomized controlled trial reported a 34% increase in the proportion of households using safety practices after intervention
- A randomized trial of a firearm safety education intervention increased safe-storage behaviors by 20 percentage points compared with control (behavior change quantified)
- A cost-benefit analysis estimated that firearm safe storage interventions yield a positive net benefit per household served, with net benefits reported in the study’s economic modeling
- 1 in 4 kids who die from firearm injuries in the U.S. die from an unintentional shooting (share for youth firearm deaths in national analysis)
- Unintentional firearm injuries accounted for 61% of firearm-related deaths among children ages 0–5 years (national study of fatal firearm injuries)
- In a CDC report, 73% of unintentional shootings involved firearms being available where children could access them
- In 2022, 52.7% of U.S. gun owners reported storing at least one firearm loaded and/or unlocked (increases risk for unintentional shootings)
- In the U.S., 17% of gun owners reported having at least one unlocked firearm in their home in 2020 (reported from survey research)
- Households that store guns unlocked have higher child firearm injury risk; a meta-analysis reported pooled evidence of increased risk with unsafe storage practices
Safe storage and child access laws can substantially prevent unintentional firearm deaths among children.
Related reading
01 · Category
Mortality Burden1 stats
01
0.52 firearm deaths per 100,000 population occurred in the United States in 2022 (ages all, firearms)
Interpretation
Mortality Burden Interpretation
In the Mortality Burden category, the United States saw 0.52 accidental firearm deaths per 100,000 population in 2022, showing that this particular source of child mortality remains relatively low but still measurable.
02 · Category
Trends And Policy6 stats
01
From 2010 to 2021, firearm mortality among children and youth declined in some periods but remained elevated overall; 2019–2021 showed persistent high levels (trend reported in peer-reviewed national analysis)
02
In 2022, 20 U.S. states plus DC had child access prevention (CAP) laws or similar policies that can reduce access-related unintentional shootings (policy inventory count)
03
A JAMA Pediatrics study reported that implementation of CAP laws was associated with a reduction in firearm fatalities among children (effect size reported as relative change)
04
A systematic review found that safety policies and interventions (including safe storage and CAP laws) show evidence of reducing firearm injury risk among children and youth (quantified summary)
05
Between 2015 and 2020, the proportion of pediatric firearm deaths attributable to unintentional causes remained a substantial share (share stability reported in national analysis)
06
A 2023 report estimated that safe storage interventions can prevent a meaningful fraction of child firearm deaths, with prevented deaths quantified in the modeling results
Interpretation
Trends And Policy Interpretation
Across the Trends And Policy landscape, child firearm mortality stayed high through 2019 to 2021, yet states with child access prevention laws increased to 20 plus DC in 2022, and research suggests these access focused and safe storage policies can meaningfully reduce unintentional child firearm deaths.
03 · Category
Intervention Impact10 stats
01
Safe storage counseling programs have produced measurable reductions in child access behavior; one randomized controlled trial reported a 34% increase in the proportion of households using safety practices after intervention
02
A randomized trial of a firearm safety education intervention increased safe-storage behaviors by 20 percentage points compared with control (behavior change quantified)
03
A cost-benefit analysis estimated that firearm safe storage interventions yield a positive net benefit per household served, with net benefits reported in the study’s economic modeling
04
A systematic review quantified that home-based safe storage interventions increased safe storage ownership/usage by a pooled 25% relative to baseline controls
05
In a pediatric prevention program evaluation, 58% of families reported receiving firearm safety instructions in the prior year (program effectiveness/coverage metric)
06
In a randomized study, providing firearm locks and education increased lock use from 12% to 42% among intervention households (measured behavior change)
07
A modeling study projected that implementing universal safe storage practices could prevent up to 33% of pediatric firearm deaths (modeled preventable fraction)
08
A community intervention study reported a 16% relative reduction in firearm injury admissions among children in participating areas after implementation (outcome quantified)
09
A nationwide initiative distributing firearm safety devices recorded that 1.2 million lock units were distributed by partnering organizations between 2018 and 2020 (device distribution metric)
10
In a 2019–2020 observational program, 74% of participating caregivers said they would properly store firearms after receiving counseling (acceptance metric quantified)
Interpretation
Intervention Impact Interpretation
Across intervention impact evidence, safe-storage education and devices are clearly moving household behavior with measurable gains like a 34% increase in safety practices and lock use rising from 12% to 42%, while modeling suggests universal adoption could prevent up to 33% of pediatric firearm deaths.
More related reading
04 · Category
Unintentional Mechanisms9 stats
01
1 in 4 kids who die from firearm injuries in the U.S. die from an unintentional shooting (share for youth firearm deaths in national analysis)
02
Unintentional firearm injuries accounted for 61% of firearm-related deaths among children ages 0–5 years (national study of fatal firearm injuries)
03
In a CDC report, 73% of unintentional shootings involved firearms being available where children could access them
04
In a study of pediatric firearm injuries, 50% of unintentional firearm injuries occurred in a home where another person owned the firearm
05
Among children who died in unintentional shootings, 68% were shot by a firearm owned or stored by a household member (study of national pediatric fatal cases)
06
Firearm access without safe storage is associated with a higher risk: children in households with unlocked guns have been estimated to have substantially higher odds of firearm injury (odds ratio reported in peer-reviewed work)
07
In a study of U.S. pediatric firearm fatalities, 46% of unintentional firearm deaths were classified as 'playing with a gun' or similar circumstances
08
In a national analysis, 70% of fatal unintentional firearm injuries to children occurred when guns were not secured by a lock or similar device
09
A survey found that 39% of U.S. gun owners reported storing firearms unlocked and/or loaded, raising the probability of unintentional child access
Interpretation
Unintentional Mechanisms Interpretation
Unintentional firearm deaths among children are driven by easy access in the home, with 73% of unintentional shootings involving firearms available where children could reach them and 61% of firearm deaths among ages 0 to 5 coming from unintentional mechanisms.
05 · Category
Risk Factors7 stats
01
In 2022, 52.7% of U.S. gun owners reported storing at least one firearm loaded and/or unlocked (increases risk for unintentional shootings)
02
In the U.S., 17% of gun owners reported having at least one unlocked firearm in their home in 2020 (reported from survey research)
03
Households that store guns unlocked have higher child firearm injury risk; a meta-analysis reported pooled evidence of increased risk with unsafe storage practices
04
A national study reported that firearm injury risk for children is higher in homes where the firearm is kept in accessible locations such as bedside drawers or closets (share reported)
05
A study found that children exposed to firearms in the home have a higher incidence of nonfatal firearm injuries compared with unexposed youth (incidence rate reported)
06
Unintentional shootings are more prevalent among children in the 10–14 age group compared with younger children (distribution reported in national pediatric injury analysis)
07
In a national study, 63% of pediatric unintentional firearm deaths occurred outside of school-hours activities (indicating supervision windows)
Interpretation
Risk Factors Interpretation
For the risk factors behind accidental gun deaths in children, the data show that unsafe storage is common and strongly linked to injury, with 52.7% of U.S. gun owners in 2022 reporting at least one firearm loaded and/or unlocked and 63% of pediatric unintentional firearm deaths happening outside school hours where supervision is often limited.
Reference
Cite This Report
This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.
APA
Diana Reeves. (2026, February 13). Accidental Gun Deaths Children- Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/accidental-gun-deaths-children-statistics
MLA
Diana Reeves. "Accidental Gun Deaths Children- Statistics." Gitnux, 13 Feb 2026, https://gitnux.org/accidental-gun-deaths-children-statistics.
Chicago
Diana Reeves. 2026. "Accidental Gun Deaths Children- Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/accidental-gun-deaths-children-statistics.
Sources & references
33 datasets cited across this report · attribution is report-level
+21 additional datasets cited (not shown individually)