The US Secret Service found that three-quarters of school shooters acquired their firearm from the home of a parent or close relative. Over 80 percent of children who died by gun suicide used a gun belonging to a family member. Unsecured firearms also fuel gun violence outside the home. Study defined children as under the age of 18. Johnson et al., “Who Are the Owners of Firearms Used in Adolescent Suicides?,” Suicide & Life-Threatening Behavior 40, no. Children defined as aged 0 to 17. most often using guns belonging to a family member. A yearly average was developed using four years of most recent available data: 2018 to 2021. WONDER Online Database, Underlying Cause of Death. More than 700 children die by gun suicide each year, 6 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. 5 Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund, “Preventable Tragedies: Findings from the #NotAnAccident Index,” August 30, 2021. That’s roughly one unintentional shooting per day, and 70 percent of these incidents take place inside a home. Analysis includes incidents that occurred between 20. For each identified incident, the researchers review available public records and, when necessary, follow up with local law enforcement to ascertain details about the incident, including location, type of firearm, and method of storage. Everytown researchers continually review media reports to identify shootings in which a person age 17 or under unintentionally fires a gun and harms themselves or someone else. Everytown tracks unintentional shootings by children that result in death or injury. 4 Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund, “#NotAnAccident Index,” 2020. Every year, nearly 350 children under the age of 18 unintentionally shoot themselves or someone else.
Key FindingsĪccess to unsecured firearms contributes to gun violence among children and teens. Brayden’s tragic story is all too common. 3 Council on Injury, Violence, and Poison Prevention Executive Committee, “Firearm-related Injuries Affecting the Pediatric Population,” Pediatrics 130, no. But if there are guns in the home, AAP notes that storing guns unloaded and locked, with ammunition kept in a separate place, can mitigate the risk of child firearm injury. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) concludes that the absence of guns from homes is the most reliable and effective measure to prevent suicide, homicide, and unintentional firearm-related injuries to children and adolescents. SeparateĪmmunition should be stored separately from the firearm in a secure location. Remember: Firearm locks do not prevent gun theft. Locking devices, safes, and lock boxes are equipped with keys, combinations, or biometric technology that limit access. Unloaded firearms should be secured with a firearm locking device, such as a jacket lock, or in a locked location, like a safe or lock box. Gun owners should remove all ammunition from the firearm, including removing any chambered rounds Lock
The bottom line is this: Storing firearms unloaded, locked, and separate from ammunition prevents access and saves lives. Monuteaux, Deborah Azrael, and Matthew Miller, “Association of Increased Safe Household Firearm Storage with Firearm Suicide and Unintentional Death Among US Youths,” JAMA Pediatrics 173, no. Research shows that these storage practices can play a vital role in reducing the risk of gun violence, particularly among children, due to unintentional shootings and gun suicides. Responsible gun owners can make our homes and communities safer by storing their firearms unloaded and locked, with ammunition kept in a separate place, to prevent access by children and other people who are at risk of harming themselves or others. General Social Survey, 2018, Data Explorer. 2 Gun ownership reported in 34 percent of households. and more than one-third of homes contain at least one gun. There are an estimated 393 million civilian-owned firearms in the United States, 1 Aaron Karp, “Estimating Global Civilian-Held Firearms Numbers,” (Small Arms Survey, June 2018).
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