Gun Homicide Rate Down 49% Since 1993 Peak; Public Unaware

Law Shield was happy to see the results of a recent Pew Research Center analysis of government data that showed national rates of gun homicide and other violent gun crimes are strikingly lower now than during their peak in the mid-1990s, paralleling a general decline in violent crime.

Compared with 1993, the peak of U.S. gun homicides, the firearm homicide rate was 49% lower in 2010, and there were fewer deaths, even though the nation’s population grew. The victimization rate for other violent crimes with a firearm—assaults, robberies and sex crimes—was 75% lower in 2011 than in 1993. Violent non-fatal crime victimization overall (with or without a firearm) also is down markedly (72%) over two decades.

Despite the marked drop in gun violence, over half of Americans say gun crime is higher today than it was 20 years ago. Women, non-whites and adults ages 30 and older are the most likely to say that gun crime rates have risen. Women and older adults are among the least likely to be victimized.

How can the sizable drop in crime be squared with the public’s perception that crime is up? Let us hear your views in the comments section below.

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