Behind every headline, these aren't just statistics but lives lost and communities shattered, as evidenced by a nation where in 2021 alone, 20,958 people were killed in firearm homicides, a devastating surge of 45% from just two years prior.
Key Takeaways
- In 2021, the United States recorded 20,958 firearm homicides, accounting for 54% of all homicides that year
- Firearm homicides increased by 45% from 2019 to 2021, rising from 14,414 to 20,958 nationwide
- In 2022, there were 24,090 gun murders and non-negligent manslaughters reported to the FBI
- In 2022, there were 538,121 nonfatal firearm injuries treated in US emergency departments, excluding those who died
- Firearm assaults resulted in 166,583 emergency department visits in 2021
- From 2019-2020, nonfatal firearm injuries rose 44%, mirroring homicide trends
- In 2022, Gun Violence Archive reported 636 mass shootings, defined as 4+ victims shot (killed or injured)
- There were 647 mass shootings in 2023 through December, per Gun Violence Archive
- Mass shootings increased 50% from 417 in 2019 to 636 in 2022
- Over 1 million firearms stolen from 2017-2021, averaging 204,000 per year
- 43% of guns used in crimes 2017-2021 were stolen
- In 2022, 380,628 crime guns traced by ATF, 70% originally purchased from licensed dealers
- 25,490 crime guns traced to straw purchasers in 2021
- Straw purchases accounted for 28% of traced crime guns recovered in Mexico 2021-2022
- Over 70% of guns recovered in Chicago crimes trafficked from out-of-state
Firearm homicides and injuries are rising sharply across many American cities.
Firearm Homicides
- In 2021, the United States recorded 20,958 firearm homicides, accounting for 54% of all homicides that year
- Firearm homicides increased by 45% from 2019 to 2021, rising from 14,414 to 20,958 nationwide
- In 2022, there were 24,090 gun murders and non-negligent manslaughters reported to the FBI
- Black Americans accounted for 60.3% of firearm homicide victims in 2021 despite comprising 14% of the population
- Males aged 15-34 experienced a firearm homicide rate of 36.9 per 100,000 in 2021
- In 2020, firearm homicides reached 19,384, a 34.7% increase from 2019
- Chicago reported 697 gun homicides in 2021
- Firearm homicide rate for Black males aged 15-24 was 102.2 per 100,000 in 2021
- In 2022, Philadelphia had 516 firearm homicides, highest on record
- Nationally, 77% of all murders in 2022 involved firearms
- Firearm homicides in the US rose 35% from 2019 to 2020 alone
- In 2021, 14,717 children and teens died by gunfire, with 46% being homicides
- Baltimore saw 306 gun homicides in 2022
- Firearm homicide victimization rate for Hispanics was 7.9 per 100,000 in 2021
- In Detroit, 309 people were killed by gunfire in 2022
- From 2019-2021, firearm homicides increased 50% among Black youth aged 1-17
- New Orleans had a firearm homicide rate of 72.8 per 100,000 in 2022
- 79% of homicides of Black children aged 1-19 were by firearm in 2021
- St. Louis recorded 200 gun homicides in 2022
- Firearm homicides accounted for 79% of all youth homicides (ages 1-17) in 2021
- Memphis had 307 shooting deaths in 2022
- In 2020, rural counties saw a 53% increase in firearm homicide rates
- Cleveland reported 172 gun homicides in 2022
- Firearm homicide rate for American Indian/Alaska Native people was 11.7 per 100,000 in 2021
- Kansas City had 169 firearm homicides in 2022
- From 2015-2019, 80% of homicides among Black males aged 15-34 were firearm-related
- Milwaukee saw 190 gun homicides in 2022
- In 2021, firearm homicides were the leading cause of death for children aged 1-19
- Washington DC had 225 gun homicides in 2022 despite population of 690k
- Firearm homicides increased 16% in large cities from 2020 to 2021
Firearm Homicides Interpretation
America's love affair with the gun, statistically speaking, is a brutal and worsening epidemic, where chilling, record-breaking numbers reveal a nation not just shooting itself, but disproportionately targeting its own young men and children, particularly in Black communities, with a bloody efficiency that has turned city streets into killing fields and made a firearm the leading cause of death for American youth.
Gun Thefts and Recoveries
- Over 1 million firearms stolen from 2017-2021, averaging 204,000 per year
- 43% of guns used in crimes 2017-2021 were stolen
- In 2022, 380,628 crime guns traced by ATF, 70% originally purchased from licensed dealers
- Private sales and thefts supplied 54% of guns recovered in crimes in 9 cities 2017-2021
- 1 in 20 guns sold by FFLs in 2021 were later recovered in crimes within 3 years
- Cars were the site of 51% of gun thefts from 2017-2021
- 393,000 guns stolen from private citizens 2017-2021
- California reported 34,000 gun thefts in 2021 alone
- Stolen guns traced in crimes increased 25% from 2016-2020
- 20% of crime guns traced to theft within 3 years of purchase
- Texas had 58,000 firearms stolen 2017-2021
- 75% of stolen guns from vehicles were unlocked, per 2021 survey
- Illinois thefts totaled 42,000 guns 2017-2021
- Midwest crime guns 40% stolen regionally
- Florida reported 51,000 gun thefts 2017-2021
- Gun thefts from residences made up 25% of total thefts 2017-2021
- Pennsylvania had 30,000 firearms stolen 2017-2021
- 60% of stolen guns used in Chicago crimes came from Indiana
- Ohio thefts reached 28,000 guns 2017-2021
- Nationally, 1 gun stolen every 2 minutes from cars
- Michigan reported 25,000 gun thefts 2017-2021
- Georgia had 24,000 firearms stolen 2017-2021
Gun Thefts and Recoveries Interpretation
These statistics reveal a grim reality where the path from a legal gun sale to a crime scene is distressingly short, often paved by carelessness and theft.
Gun Trafficking and Straw Purchases
- 25,490 crime guns traced to straw purchasers in 2021
- Straw purchases accounted for 28% of traced crime guns recovered in Mexico 2021-2022
- Over 70% of guns recovered in Chicago crimes trafficked from out-of-state
- ATF identified 10,630 trafficking investigations in FY2022
- 43% of crime guns traced to unlicensed sellers 2017-2021
- Indiana supplied 20% of guns used in Chicago crimes via trafficking/theft
- Multiple sales (potential straw buys) totaled 65,000 handguns in 2022
- 90% of guns trafficked to Mexico originated in US, 75% from TX/AZ border states
- Baltimore crimes involved guns trafficked from 41 states
- Straw purchasing prosecutions rose to 1,200 in FY2022
- 50% of DC crime guns from Virginia/Maryland via trafficking
- Ghost guns involved in 9% of traced crimes in 2022, often trafficked
- Philadelphia recovered 80% out-of-state guns, mostly trafficked from South
- 1,300+ firearms traffickers convicted in FY2022
- Milwaukee crimes trace to 70% out-of-state guns from trafficking hubs
- 25% of ATF trafficking cases involve family/friends straw buys
- Detroit 75% crime guns from Ohio/Indiana trafficking corridors
- Straw buys detected in 15% of multiple handgun sales 2022
- New Orleans guns 60% trafficked from MS/TX
- 40,000+ guns diverted via straw purchases 2016-2020
Gun Trafficking and Straw Purchases Interpretation
These statistics paint a grimly efficient portrait of American gun violence, revealing a domestic industry of diversion where legal purchases in permissive states are systematically funneled through straw buyers and traffickers to become illegal tools of crime in our cities and beyond.
Mass Shootings
- In 2022, Gun Violence Archive reported 636 mass shootings, defined as 4+ victims shot (killed or injured)
- There were 647 mass shootings in 2023 through December, per Gun Violence Archive
- Mass shootings increased 50% from 417 in 2019 to 636 in 2022
- In 2022, 813 people were killed in mass shootings
- 2023 saw mass shootings in all 50 states, with California leading at 68 incidents
- Public mass shootings (excluding gang/felony-related) totaled 106 in 2022, killing 152
- Schools experienced 82 mass shootings in 2023
- Mass shootings at houses of worship rose to 14 in 2023
- 37% of 2022 mass shootings occurred at residences
- Black people were 25% of mass shooting victims in 2022 despite 14% population
- Males perpetrated 97% of mass shootings from 1982-2023
- Handguns used in 75% of mass shootings tracked by GVA in 2022
- 2022 had 25 mass shootings with 10+ victims injured/killed
- Festivals and parties hosted 12% of mass shootings in 2023
- From 2014-2023, 3,065 mass shootings killed 1,982 and injured 7,392
- Workplace mass shootings totaled 36 in 2023
- AR-15 style rifles used in 28 mass shootings since 1999
- Mass shootings doubled from 277 in 2018 to 636 in 2022
- 20 children under 12 killed in mass shootings in 2023
- Stores/parking lots saw 15% of 2022 mass shootings
- 2022 Uvalde school mass shooting killed 21, injured 17
- Buffalo supermarket mass shooting in 2022 killed 10 Black victims
- Highland Park parade mass shooting killed 7, injured 48 in 2022
- In 2023, ATF recovered 380,628 crime guns with 1,899,582 total crime guns traced since 2017
Mass Shootings Interpretation
America has perfected a grim form of arithmetic, where the annual body count climbs not by accident but by design, fueled by a uniquely accessible arsenal and a society that keeps tallying its dead in homes, schools, and shopping aisles with a weary, practiced efficiency.
Non-Fatal Firearm Injuries
- In 2022, there were 538,121 nonfatal firearm injuries treated in US emergency departments, excluding those who died
- Firearm assaults resulted in 166,583 emergency department visits in 2021
- From 2019-2020, nonfatal firearm injuries rose 44%, mirroring homicide trends
- Black males had a nonfatal firearm injury rate of 547 per 100,000 in 2021
- In 2022, 80% of nonfatal gun injuries were from assaults
- Pediatric nonfatal firearm injuries increased 30% from 2019 to 2020, totaling 18,357 cases
- Chicago emergency rooms treated 2,996 nonfatal shooting victims in 2022
- Males accounted for 84% of nonfatal firearm assault injuries in 2021
- Nonfatal gun injuries cost the US $28 billion annually in medical and lost productivity
- In Philadelphia, 1,629 people survived gunshots in 2022
- Firearm injury hospitalizations rose 25% from 2019 to 2021
- Baltimore had 1,099 nonfatal shooting victims in 2022
- Ages 15-24 represented 40% of nonfatal firearm ED visits in 2021
- Detroit recorded 1,607 nonfatal shootings in 2022
- Nonfatal firearm injuries among Black youth doubled from 2019 to 2021
- St. Louis saw 629 nonfatal gun injuries in 2022
- 30% of nonfatal gun injuries lead to permanent disability
- Memphis had 1,176 shooting survivors in 2022
- Gun assault injuries increased 50% in urban areas from 2019-2022
- Cleveland reported 750 nonfatal shootings in 2022
- Firearm injury ED visits for females rose 36% from 2019-2020
- Kansas City had 786 nonfatal gun injuries in 2022
- Milwaukee treated 837 shooting survivors in 2022
- Nonfatal injuries from gun robberies totaled 12,000 cases in 2021
- New Orleans had 650 nonfatal shootings in 2022
Non-Fatal Firearm Injuries Interpretation
America’s ongoing gun violence epidemic, measured not in quiet graves but in deafening emergency rooms, stitches together a national tapestry of suffering where cities tally survivors like scores, children’s injuries surge as a grotesque growth industry, and the lifetime cost of a bullet is counted in both billions and broken bodies.
Sources & References
- Reference 1CDCcdc.govVisit source
- Reference 2CDEcde.ucr.cjis.govVisit source
- Reference 3WONDERwonder.cdc.govVisit source
- Reference 4PEWRESEARCHpewresearch.orgVisit source
- Reference 5HOMEhome.chicagopolice.orgVisit source
- Reference 6PUBLICHEALTHpublichealth.jhu.eduVisit source
- Reference 7PHILLYPOLICEphillypolice.comVisit source
- Reference 8CRIME-DATA-EXPLORERcrime-data-explorer.fr.cloud.govVisit source
- Reference 9EVERYTOWNRESEARCHeverytownresearch.orgVisit source
- Reference 10KFFkff.orgVisit source
- Reference 11PUBLICSAFETYpublicsafety.baltimorecity.govVisit source
- Reference 12DETROITMIdetroitmi.govVisit source
- Reference 13AMERICANPROGRESSamericanprogress.orgVisit source
- Reference 14NOLAnola.comVisit source
- Reference 15SLMPDslmpd.orgVisit source
- Reference 16MEMPHISTNmemphistn.govVisit source
- Reference 17RANDrand.orgVisit source
- Reference 18CLEVELANDOHIOclevelandohio.govVisit source
- Reference 19KCPDkcpd.orgVisit source
- Reference 20NCBIncbi.nlm.nih.govVisit source
- Reference 21CITYcity.milwaukee.govVisit source
- Reference 22NBERnber.orgVisit source
- Reference 23MPDCmpdc.dc.govVisit source
- Reference 24COUNCILONCJcounciloncj.orgVisit source
- Reference 25JAMANETWORKjamanetwork.comVisit source
- Reference 26GUNVIOLENCEARCHIVEgunviolencearchive.orgVisit source
- Reference 27PUBLICATIONSpublications.aap.orgVisit source
- Reference 28HEALTHDATAhealthdata.govVisit source
- Reference 29BJSbjs.ojp.govVisit source
- Reference 30CNNcnn.comVisit source
- Reference 31MOTHERJONESmotherjones.comVisit source
- Reference 32THETRACEthetrace.orgVisit source
- Reference 33ATFatf.govVisit source
- Reference 34EVERYTOWNeverytown.orgVisit source
- Reference 35GIFFORDSgiffords.orgVisit source
- Reference 36OAGoag.ca.govVisit source
- Reference 37NRAHLFnrahlf.orgVisit source
- Reference 38ISPisp.illinois.govVisit source
- Reference 39FDLEfdle.state.fl.usVisit source
- Reference 40PApa.govVisit source
- Reference 41CHICAGOTRIBUNEchicagotribune.comVisit source
- Reference 42OHIOATTORNEYGENERALohioattorneygeneral.govVisit source
- Reference 43NSSFnssf.orgVisit source
- Reference 44MICHIGANmichigan.govVisit source
- Reference 45GBIgbi.georgia.govVisit source
- Reference 46CITYOFCHICAGOcityofchicago.orgVisit source
- Reference 47CHICAGOPOLICEchicagopolice.orgVisit source
- Reference 48JUSTICEjustice.govVisit source
- Reference 49PHILLYPOLICEphillypolice.orgVisit source
- Reference 50JSONLINEjsonline.comVisit source
- Reference 51FREEPfreep.comVisit source
- Reference 52FEDERALREGISTERfederalregister.govVisit source