Gun-Free School Zones & Shootings Statistics (2024 Updated)

[Talyn]

This article originally appeared in ammo.com and is re-published here with permission.

Report Highlights:

• There have been 2,646 school shooting incidents in the U.S. since 1966. Of those, 2,205 (94%) occurred after the 1990 School Zone Safety Act (Amended in 1995). (Source)
• There are 1,325 total State Gun Laws per this 2022 report. (Source)
• The Federal government has been enacting Federal Firearm regulations since 1934.
• The correlation between population density and school shootings is more profound in population density than in firearm legislation.
• There is no standard “School shooting” definition in the U.S. The Secret Service defines targeted attacks, while most data includes incidents when a firearm is brandished, fired, or a bullet hits school property.
• There were 238 school shooting incidents during the National Assault Weapons ban, 293 in the decade before, and 347 in the decade after.
• 62% of school shootings (as defined) occurred during non-school hours (1970-2022).
• Firearms were used in 61% of targeted school attacks, and 39% used knives between 2008 & 2017.

Gun-Free School Zones & Shootings Statistics (2024 Updated) • The Havok Journal

by Cassandra McBride This article originally appeared in ammo.com and is re-published here with permission. Report Highlights: There have been 2,646 There have been 2,646 school shooting incidents in the U.S. since 1966.

havokjournal.com

Targeted Attacks Highlights

• Students are targeted more often than faculty and SROs.
• Schools with fewer than 1,000 students have more targeted attacks than schools with more than 1,000 students.
• School attackers are more likely to be male than female.
• Suicidal ideations, disciplinary action, and retaliation are common precursors to an attack.
• Few schools have metal detection devices, and less than half of schools in America have armed School Resource Officers.
• The average targeted attack occurs after a seasonal break and lasts less than one minute.
• Most attackers get their firearms from a close friend or relative. Firearms are often obtained from unsecured locations.
• The majority of assailants obtained their weapons on the day of the attack.

Understanding the Attacker

Many headlines speculate about one’s mental health before an attack on an educational institution. 63% of assailants from 2008 to 2017 had depression. 60% reported suicidal thoughts, 29% had anxiety, 26% had anger issues, and 20% had psychosis.

49% of the assailants had substance abuse issues. 46% of them had parents or siblings struggling with substance abuse. 71% had divorced parents, and 40% reported dysfunction in the family or domestic violence.

100% had social stressors within six months. Here are some of the more common characteristics of school attackers.

• 89% had disciplinary issues at school (i.e., suspension, poor grades, etc.)
• 80% expressed elicited concern from bystanders
• 83% shared verbal, written, video, or visual communications with threats
• 74% displayed anger outbursts or aggressive acts
• 71% stockpiled weapons
• 71% had an interest in weapons
• 63% depression and isolation
• 57% observable differences in appearance and behavior
• 54% expressed suicide and self-harm
• 37% had a heightened interest in violence