Gangs & Gun Violence Statistics

Facts at a Glance:
· 100% of cities with population greater than or equal to 250,000 reported gang activity in 2001
· 85% of cities with population between 100,000 and 229,999 reported gang activity in 2001
· 65% of cities with population between 50,000 and 99,999 reported gang activity in 2001
· 44% of cities with population between 25,000 and 49,999 reported gang activity in 2001
· 20% of cities with population between 2,500 and 24,999 reported gang activity in 2001
· 35% of suburban counties reported gang activity in 2001
· 11% of rural counties reported gang activity in 2001
· 95% of the jurisdictions reporting gang activity in 2001 had also reported gang activity in previous survey years 3,000 jurisdictions across the US are estimated to have had gang activity in 2001
· 56% of cities with population greater than or equal to 100,000 reported an increase or no significant change in the number of gang members in 2001
· 42% of cities with a population of at least 25,000 reported an increase in the number of gang members
· 45% of cities with a population of at least 25,000 reported an increase in the number of gangs from the previous two years
· 69% of cities with population at least 100,000 reported having gang related homicides in 2001
· 37% of cities with population between 50,000 and 99,999 reported having gang related homicides in 2001
· 59% of all homicides in 2001 in Los Angeles and
· 53% in Chicago were gang related, there was a total of 698 gang related homicides in there two cities combined where as 130 other cities with population of at least 100,000 with gang problems reported having a total of 637 homicides between them

Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, National Youth Gang Survey Trends from 1996 to 2000, by Arlen Egley, Jr. and Aline K. Major.

Facts at a Glance:

Trends in Gangs in the US :

In 1996, 53% of the respondents to the National Youth Gang Survey reported active gangs in their jurisdictions, but by 2000, the percent reporting active gangs dropped to 40%.

It is estimated that more than 24,500 gangs were active in the U.S. in 2000, which is a drop of 5% from the number estimated to be active in 1999. Despite this overall decrease in the number of gangs, cities with population over 25,000 reported a very slight increase in the number of active gangs from 1999.

It is estimated that 772,500 people in the U.S. were members of gangs in 2000, a drop of 8% from the number of active members in 1999, but again, cities with population over 25,000 experienced an increase in the number of active gang members despite the overall drop.

91% of cities with population over 250,000, 64% of cities with population between 100,000 and 250,000, 55% of cities with population between 50,000 and 100,000, and 32% of cities with population between 25,000 and 50,000 reported at least one homicide from 1999 to 2000 that was attributed to gang violence. In these cities, 47% said that the number of gang- related homicides had increased in their jurisdiction from 1999 to 2000.

It is estimated that 94% of gang members were male and 6% were female in 2000.

It is estimated that 39% of gangs active in 2000 had at least one female member; 2% of gangs were identified as being composed of predominantly female members.

In 1996, 50% of gang members were under the age of 18, but in 1999 only 37% of gang members were estimated to be under the age of 18.

In 1999 it is estimated that 47% of gang members were Hispanic, 31% were African American, 13% were white, and 7% were Asian. These percentages seem to remain fairly steady over the years.

Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, National Youth Gang Survey Trends from 1996 to 2000, by Arlen Egley, Jr. 

 

GUN VIOLENCE: THE STAGGERING STATISTICS

Economic Cost of Gun Violence: $100 Billion annual overall cost

Most victims are uninsured (debts are paid by public taxpayers)

(Cook & Ludwig)  Breakdown in Cost by Incident

$22,400 each for unintentional shooting $18,400 each for gun assault injuries

$5,400 each by suicide                                                                 

(Ted R. Miller & Mark A. Cohen ;The Cost of Gunshot & Stab wounds’’ Accident analysis and Prevention 1997)

Indirect Cost: (re: lost of productivity, mental healthcare, emergency transport, and insurance administration)
$2.8 Million per firearm fatality $249,000 per hospitalization for gunshot victim

$73,000 per emergency room visit for released gunshot victims           

(Phillip J. Cook, Gun Violence, ;The Real Cost; Oxford University Press 2000)
Estimated Annual Treatments for Gunshot Victims:

$100-$126 billion per year                                                              (Miller & Cohen) (Linda Gunderson, ;The Financial Cost of Gun Violence; Annals of Internal Medicine 1999)                                               

Children and Firearms:

More than 10 children, and teenagers 19 and under, are killed by guns EVERYDAY, and many more are wounded.  

77% of murdered juveniles 13-19 are killed by firearms   39% of households have a gun, 24% are handguns Annually 1,409 children and teenagers have taken their own lives with guns

Guns kept in the home for self protection are 22x’s more likely to kill a family member or friend than to kill in self defense                                     (;Facts For Families; July 2004)

 

The Comparison of Gun Violence in the US and other countries -- the total of murders by handguns: 11,789 United States

373 Germany

151 Canada

57 Australia 54 England & Wales (total)

19 Japan *These numbers only account for homicides, does not include suicides;  (The Brady Campaign to prevent Gun Violence) 

MORE SOBERING FACTS;

Among 26 industrialized nations, 86% of gun deaths among children under the age of 15 occurred in the United States .                                      (The Brady Campaign to prevent Gun Violence)

Contrary to beliefs young children possess the physical strength to fire a gun 25% 3-4 year olds, 70% 5-6 year olds, 90% 7-8 year olds including most semi- automatic handguns.                                              (Christoffel Naurecka, Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine 1995)

Taxpayers pay more than 85% of medical cost for treatment of firearm related injuries.                                                                           (;The Cost of Hospitalization for Firearm Injuries; Jama vol.260 November 25,1998, Abstract Journal of Trauma February 1995)

In a 10-year span, 633 law enforcement officers were feloniously killed by firearms in the US ; a handgun was the murder weapon in78% (492 victims) of those murders; of the remainder, rifles killed 106 officers and shotguns killed 35. In total 253 slained officers were equipped with armor as well.                                                                                                                                                           (US Dept. of Justice)

In a 19 year time span (1977-1996) the firearm industry produced 85,644,715 firearms.

39,024,786 handguns 26,651,062 rifles

19,969,867 shotguns                                                                 *These are reflections of the numbers produced in the US alone.(Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms)

While handguns account for only 1/3 of all firearms owned in the US , they account for more than 2/3 of all firearm related deaths each year.                                                                                                                                                       (Lee Kellerman ;The Epidemiology Basis for Prevention of Firearm Injuries 1991)

Every 2 years more Americans die from firearm injuries than the total number of American soldiers killed during the 8 year Vietnam War.                                                                                                                                                      (CDC National Center for Health Statistics Report 1999)  

Teens & Easy Access to Guns

39% of teens know someone who has been shot before 37% of teens know someone they can get guns from

27% of teens know a gun is kept in their house, apartment, or car          (Teenage Research Unlimited 2003) More than 3,500 students were expelled from school in 1998-1999 for bringing a gun to school, 43% of them were in elementary or junior high school. This means that in a 40 week period an average of 88 children per week nationwide are expelled for having guns at school.

*These figures only include those students who were caught.

     (US Dept. of Education 1998-1999)

·     During 1999 52% of all murder victims younger than the age of 18 were killed by firearms, and 82% of these victims were between the ages of 13-19 years old. (FBI Uniform Crime Report)

 59% of students in grades 6-12 know where to get a gun and 2/3 of these  students say they can acquire a gun within 24hours.                                                                                                                                            ( Harvard University )  

Most Murder Victims ages 12-17 are Black:

Of the 24,950 juveniles ages 12-17 who were murdered annually between 1980-2000 12,880 were black 52%) and 11,270 were white (42%). The remaining 620 murdered were combined as American Indian, Alaska Native, Asian, or Pacific Islanders.                                                                                                                             (Trends in the Murder of Juveniles; 1980-2000)