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BJS: Homicide Trends in the United States, 1980-2008

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Homicide Trends in the United States, 1980-2008 – Annual Rates for 2009 and 2010. Alexia Cooper and Erica L. Smith, BJS Statisticians

  • “The nation’s homicide rate fell to 4.8 homicides per 100,000 U.S. residents in 2010, its lowest level in four decades, the Bureau of Justice Statistics announced today. Much of the decline was in the nation’s largest cities, those with a population of one million or more, where the homicide rate dropped dramatically from 35.5 homicides per 100,000 residents in 1991 to a low of 11.9 per 100,000 in 2008. The sharp increase in homicides from the mid-1980s through the early 1990s, and much of the subsequent decline, is attributable to gun violence by teens (age 14 to 17) and young adults (age 18 to 24). Despite the recent decline, the number of gun homicides committed by teens and young adults in 2008 remained similar to the counts of the mid-1980s. Most murders were intraracial. From 1980 through 2008, 84 percent of white homicide victims were murdered by whites and 93 percent of black victims were murdered by blacks…The number of homicides known to involve adult or juvenile gang violence has quadrupled since 1980, increasing from about 220 homicides in 1980 to 960 homicides in 2008. From 1980 to 2008, gang violence increased from one percent to six percent of all homicides. During this same period, gun involvement in gang-related homicides increased from 73 percent to 92 percent.”
  • See also NYT: Easing Restrictions on Gun Permits – In the past 30 years, states across the country have made it easier for people to obtain permits to carry concealed guns. State laws vary but are primarily distinguished by whether the permit process is “shall issue,” in which the authorities must grant a license to anyone who meets certain basic legal requirements, or “may issue,” in which they are afforded discretion in their decisions.”
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