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Gaining Perspective on
Gun Deaths in the U.S.

According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) the majority (over 83% in 2016) of gun deaths each year are due to suicide, not homicide1, and a very small fraction of them are fatalities in Mass Shootings.2

Gun Deaths in 2016

More Concerning Statistics

In over half of the mass shootings in the past 35 years, the perpetrator had prior signs of mental illness. Which, taken in conjunction with fact that the weapons used by these perpetrators were largely legally obtained, supports the argument for increased gun safety policies and measures rather than greater restrictions on gun ownership in general.3

of perpetrators of Mass shootings in the u.s. 1982–2018

54.1%

had prior signs of
mental illness

71.4%

had legally obtained
weapons

Taking Action

A recent survey by The New England Journal of Medicine shows support from the majority of gun owners for responsible courses of action include supporting increased gun safety policies and seeking to prohibit certain dangerous persons from having guns.4, 5

background check
require
background
checks
for all gun sales and improve reporting system, including from mental health care providers
oversight
improve
oversight
of gun dealers and impose harsher consequences for violations
no guns
prohibit
ownership
for those with mental illnesses and violators of domestic-violence restraining orders
  1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. Compressed Mortality File 1999-2016 Series 20 No. 2V, 2017, as compiled from data provided by the 57 vital statistics jurisdictions through the Vital Statistics Cooperative Program, wonder.cdc.gov/cmf-icd10.html. Accessed on March 10, 2018.
  2. US Mass Shootings, 1982-2018: Data From Mother Jones’ Investigation, www.motherjones.com/politics/2012/12/mass-shootings-mother-jones-full-data. Accessed April 1, 2018.
  3. Id.
  4. “Two years after Newtown—public opinion on gun policy revisited”, Preventive Medicine, 19 May 2015, by Colleen L. Barry, Emma E. McGinty, Jon S. Vernick, Daniel W. Webster. Accessed at April 5, 2018 at www.journals.elsevier.com/preventive-medicine.
  5. “After Newtown — Public Opinion on Gun Policy and Mental Illness”, The New England Journal of Medicine, by Colleen L. Barry, Emma E. McGinty, Jon S. Vernick, et al, January 28, 2013. Accessed on April 8, 2018 at www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp1300512.
RGOA

Note: Responsible Gun Owners of America is a ficticious organization, but the data is real.