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Guns Remain Leading Cause of Death for U.S. Children and Teens: Alarming New Report Highlights Epidemic
A recent report from the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions has drawn stark attention to the ongoing epidemic of gun violence in the United States, particularly its devastating impact on children and teens. The report, titled Gun Violence in the United States 2022: Examining the Burden Among Children and Teens, utilizes the latest finalized data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to reveal troubling statistics and trends in gun-related deaths.
According to the report, a staggering 48,204 people died from gunshots in the U.S. in 2022, marking the second highest number on record. This figure includes 27,032 suicides—the highest number ever recorded in the country. The report underscores that gun deaths have now become the leading cause of death among children and teens aged 1 to 17, with rates in this age group increasing by 106% since 2013.
The impact is disproportionately severe among Black youth. In 2022, Black children and teens aged 1 to 17 experienced a gun death rate 18 times higher than their white counterparts. Additionally, the gun homicide rate among Black children and teens saw a 5.6% increase from 2021 to 2022. Notably, the rate of gun suicides among Black older teens and emerging adults aged 15 to 19 surged by 24% year-over-year, surpassing that of white teens in the same age range for the first time.
Silvia Villarreal, lead author of the report and director of research translation at the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions, emphasized the urgency of addressing this crisis. “We hope this report helps policymakers grasp the scale of this crisis and the possibility of addressing it more effectively with equitable, evidence-based measures including child gun access prevention laws,” Villarreal stated.
The report advocates for the extension and strengthening of Child Access Prevention (CAP) laws. These laws, which are currently implemented in over half of U.S. states, require firearms to be securely stored in households with minors. Some jurisdictions also hold firearm owners accountable when a minor’s access to a firearm results in injury or death.
The data, derived from the CDC’s Underlying Cause of Death database, includes unintentional shootings, shootings by police, suicides, and homicides. The report reveals a slight decline in overall gun violence rates in 2022, with a 2.7% decrease from the previous year, attributed to a drop in gun homicides. Despite this, gun suicides increased by 2.7%, reaching the highest level since the CDC began tracking firearm fatalities in 1968.
Other significant findings from the report include:
- There were 2,526 gun deaths in 2022 among 1- to 17-year-olds, averaging nearly 7 per day.
- Firearms were responsible for nearly one-third of all deaths among 15- to 17-year-olds.
- The rates of gun suicide among Black youth aged 10 to 17 tripled from 2013 to 2022, and more than doubled for Hispanic youth in the same age group.
- Black male teens and young adults aged 15 to 34 accounted for 34% of all gun homicides in 2022, despite representing just 2% of the U.S. population.
- Over half (55%) of deaths among Black older teens aged 15 to 17 in 2022 were due to guns.
- The gun homicide rate among Black female teens and young adults aged 15 to 34 was nine times higher than that of their white counterparts.
- American Indian/Alaskan Natives experienced gun homicide rates five times higher than their white counterparts.
To combat the gun violence crisis, the report recommends several policy measures, including the implementation of firearm licensing with background checks and safety training, policies to remove firearms from at-risk individuals, community violence intervention programs, more stringent permitting for open and concealed carrying of firearms, and the repeal of stand-your-ground laws.
Cassandra Crifasi, co-author of the report and co-director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions, concluded, “The research is clear—these policies can help reduce rates of gun violence, including the record-high rates we’re seeing among our nation’s youngest and most vulnerable.”
For further details, the full report is available at [Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions](publichealth.jhu.edu/sites/def … he-united-states.pdf).
