New Everytown Report Finds Mass Shootings Involving Assault Weapons or High-Capacity Magazines Result in 400% More Victims

Gun Industry Reaps Billions in Profits While Mass Shootings Cost a Minimum of $60 Million Per Tragedy

Research Shows Continued Federal Ban Could Have Prevented 38 Mass Shootings; State Bans Cut Fatalities by 41%

NEW YORK – A comprehensive new report by Everytown for Gun Safety details the devastating toll assault weapons and high-capacity magazines have taken on American communities. The research highlights a disturbing trend: since the federal assault weapons ban expired in 2004, these military-style weapons of war and magazines that increase their lethality have increasingly moved from the battlefield to local streets, resulting in devastating loss of life during high-profile mass shootings and everyday local gun violence.

The report finds that the gun industry has fueled this crisis by aggressively marketing military-grade weapons to civilians, particularly young men and children. While manufacturers reap record profits – with a congressional analysis showing just four manufacturers earned over $1 billion from assault weapons sales alone from 2012-2022 – taxpayers and families bear the staggering emotional, physical, and financial costs. What’s more, high-profile tragedies often fuel a cycle of aggressive marketing coupled with panic-buying; as a result, at least two-thirds of the assault weapons in circulation by 2020 were made and sold after the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in 2012.

“The data is clear: It’s assault weapons that put the ‘mass’ in mass shootings,” said John Feinblatt, President of Everytown for Gun Safety. “When civilians can buy weapons of war at their local gun store, every public space is a potential killing field. We know that restricting assault weapons prevents mass shootings, which means one thing: lawmakers who oppose restrictions are putting gun company profits ahead of public safety.”

“Compared to handguns, assault weapons fire a greater number of far more powerful rounds in a shorter time, causing catastrophic, battlefield-level tissue damage and drastically reducing odds of survival. For children, whose smaller bodies are especially vulnerable to this kind of violence, these injuries are even more devastating,” said Sonali Rajan, Senior Director of Research at Everytown for Gun Safety. “While the evidence on the deadly impact of assault weapons is clear, it’s critical that we remember that these statistics aren’t just numbers on a page – they’re families shattered, communities torn apart, and a lifetime of trauma for survivors. Lawmakers can and must adopt evidenced-based solutions proven to keep communities safe from these weapons of war.”

Key findings from the report include:

• Mass shootings involving at least one assault weapon or high-capacity magazine lead to a 400 percent increase in the number of people shot. Since 2016, all 10 of the highest-casualty mass shootings in the U.S. involved both. 
• Research suggests that keeping the federal assault weapons ban in place from 2005 through 2022 could have prevented an estimated 38 public mass shootings.
  • Another study found that the federal assault weapons and high-capacity magazine bans reduced mass shooting fatalities, and had the law continued, it would have prevented hundreds of mass shooting deaths.
• Each mass shooting inflicts a heavy financial toll, costing a minimum of over $60 million. These tragedies heavily burden taxpayers while the gun industry profits. 
• Assault weapons make up a growing share of firearms recovered by police in connection with a crime. In cities, recoveries increased by 27 percent from 2020 to 2024. ATF data also shows that recoveries of firearms in assault-weapon calibers (.223, 5.56mm, 7.62mm) rose 64 percent, from roughly 18,000 in 2018 to nearly 30,000 in 2023.

The report outlines critical policy pathways to address weapon lethality, proving that state-level prohibitions work: counties in states with assault weapons bans experience a 41 percent lower incidence of mass shooting fatalities. That said, these state laws are heavily undermined by interstate trafficking from areas with weaker protections. A 2024 study noted that a tight cluster of four neighboring Northeast states with bans (CT, MA, NY, NJ) saw lower assault weapon recovery rates at 3.9 percent, compared to other ban states like California (7 percent) and Maryland (5 percent).

The report highlights how federal policy frameworks could effectively curb this epidemic. Additionally, the research emphasizes state-level strategies to prevent trafficking and counter the emerging threat of unregulated, homemade weapons—including ghost guns, 3D-printed firearms, and machine gun conversion devices. Without targeted oversight, these weapons allow legally prohibited individuals, including minors and people with a history of violence, to entirely circumvent gun safety laws.

Ultimately, decades of data demonstrate that both state and federal measures addressing these weapons are highly effective in preventing mass shootings and mitigating their worst impacts. The evidence is clear: prioritizing public safety through evidence-based policy is essential to protecting communities from continued deadly violence.