CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — A woman in West Virginia fatally shot a man who began firing an AR-15-style rifle into a crowd of people that had gathered for a party, authorities said.
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Counties with the most gun deaths
Counties With the Most Gun Deaths
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Over the past few years, the U.S. has seen sharply increasing levels of violent crime. After two decades of decreases beginning in the mid-1990s, incidents have begun to rise again. Within the last two years, the trend has become especially pronounced. FBI data recently showed a 5.6% increase in violent crime from 2019 to 2020, even as rates of property crime continued to decline. In the same year, the murder rate rose by around 30%, one of the largest year-over-year increases on record.
Guns are closely tied to this trend in the U.S. The U.S. has the highest rate of civilian gun ownership of any country, and researchers have found the prevalence of guns to be associated with greater amounts of violent crime and gun deaths generally. Given these dynamics, it is unsurprising to see that gun-related deaths have spiked in recent years during the broader increase in violent crime.
Recent data from the CDC reveals how this trend has played out. In 2014, there were only 3.5 gun-related homicides per 100,000 population. By 2016, that figure increased to 4.6, and in 2020, it jumped to 6.2. Separately, gun-related suicides have also increased in recent years—from a low of 5.5 per 100,000 population in 2006 to 7.0 in 2020—but this increase has been more gradual.
The rates of gun related homicides _ suicides are rising 1
In total, 45,221 deaths in 2020 were gun-related, which is a 14% increase over the prior year and a 43% increase over a decade before. These gun-related deaths constitute a majority of both homicides and suicides. Over the past three years, more than three in four U.S. homicides (76.4%) involved a gun, while more than half of suicides (51.2%) were gun-related.
More than 75_ of homicides _ 50_ of suicides involve a gun 1
While the overall growth of gun-related deaths is a nationwide issue, some locations are more affected than others. Many of the states with the highest rates of gun-related deaths are states that also have the highest rates of gun ownership. These states include locations in the South and Mountain West, along with Alaska. Mississippi leads the nation in gun-related fatalities per 100,000 residents at 28.6, followed by neighboring Louisiana at 26.3 and Wyoming at 25.9. At the other end of the spectrum, Hawaii has the lowest rate of gun-related fatalities at 3.4 per 100,000 residents, followed by a group of Northeastern states including Massachusetts (3.7) and New Jersey (5.0). However, gun ownership is not a perfect predictor of gun deaths: for example, states like New Hampshire and Maine have relatively high levels of gun prevalence, but are also in the bottom 10 states for gun deaths per capita.
Small _ midsize counties with the highest rates of gun deaths 1
15. DeKalb County, GA
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- Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 19.0
- Total gun-related deaths: 145
- Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: -15.2%
- Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 87.1%
- Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 57.3%
14. Hamilton County, OH
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- Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 19.4
- Total gun-related deaths: 159
- Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +23.3%
- Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 85.9%
- Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 51.6%
13. Pima County, AZ
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- Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 19.5
- Total gun-related deaths: 207
- Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +1.5%
- Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 69.4%
- Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 60.7%
12. Cook County, IL
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- Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 20.4
- Total gun-related deaths: 1,040
- Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +45.7%
- Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 87.2%
- Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 33.5%
11. Fulton County, GA
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- Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 21.4
- Total gun-related deaths: 231
- Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +29.1%
- Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 83.1%
- Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 51.1%
10. Oklahoma County, OK
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- Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 23.1
- Total gun-related deaths: 186
- Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +0.5%
- Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 79.0%
- Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 58.2%
9. Cuyahoga County, OH
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- Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 24.3
- Total gun-related deaths: 298
- Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +29.6%
- Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 82.1%
- Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 48.6%
8. Milwaukee County, WI
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- Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 25.6
- Total gun-related deaths: 242
- Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +69.2%
- Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 82.3%
- Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 42.3%
7. Duval County, FL
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- Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 25.6
- Total gun-related deaths: 247
- Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +14.4%
- Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 83.1%
- Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 56.6%
6. Wayne County, MI
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- Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 26.3
- Total gun-related deaths: 458
- Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +30.9%
- Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 86.2%
- Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 51.8%
5. St. Louis County, MO
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- Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 26.4
- Total gun-related deaths: 262
- Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +15.9%
- Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 90.8%
- Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 51.9%
4. Jefferson County, KY
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- Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 31.0
- Total gun-related deaths: 238
- Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +65.3%
- Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 89.2%
- Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 53.0%
3. Marion County, IN
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- Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 32.8
- Total gun-related deaths: 317
- Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +46.1%
- Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 85.2%
- Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 58.0%
2. Philadelphia County, PA
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- Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 34.1
- Total gun-related deaths: 538
- Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +46.6%
- Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 86.8%
- Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 38.1%
1. Shelby County, TN
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- Total gun-related deaths per 100k: 40.6
- Total gun-related deaths: 380
- Change in gun-related deaths since 2019: +36.7%
- Gun-related homicides as a share of total homicides: 91.5%
- Gun-related suicides as a share of total suicides: 64.0%
