New Everytown Report Finds Youth Gun Suicide at Highest Rate in 20 Years

Youth Firearm Suicide Increased 53% in the Last Decade Among Youth Between the Ages of 10-24 Years Old

In the Last Decade, States With The Highest Rates of Youth Firearm Suicide Include Alaska, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, and New Mexico; States With The Fastest-Growing Youth Firearm Suicide Rates Include Indiana, Colorado, Missouri, Georgia, and New Mexico 

Steps to Reduce Suicide Risks Include Policies and Practices That Limit Easy Access to Firearms, Knowing the Warning Signs of Suicide, and Improving Access to Mental Health Services

NEW YORK — Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund today released a new report detailing that youth gun suicide is at its highest rate in 20 years. Over the past decade, the firearm suicide rate has increased 53% for young people between the ages of 10 to 24 years old.

After the tragedies of the past few weeks in Buffalo and Uvalde, and the various shootings that didn’t make the news, the country is mourning and young people are acutely aware. With millions more guns in homes, coupled with fear and stress from the pandemic and gun violence in our schools and communities, there is an elevated risk for a continued youth gun suicide crisis that has been on the rise.

“America’s young people are waiting with desperate impatience for America’s adults to recognize the full scope of this nation’s gun violence crisis and take action to stop the bloodshed,” said John Feinblatt, president of Everytown for Gun Safety. “So many gun suicides are preventable tragedies, and averting disaster starts with safe storage and opening up a line of communication with their kids.”

“We’re seeing colliding epidemics among our youth: mental health and firearm suicide,” said Shannon Watts, founder of Moms Demand Action. “We cannot forget the deadly impact easy access to firearms is having on our children, especially as guns are now the leading cause of death for children and teens in this country.”

“This research is an urgent wake up call for our country,” said Sarah Burd-Sharps, senior director of research for Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund. “Nearly half of all suicides among young people are with a gun. But these suicides can be prevented—most immediately by removing access by children and teens to firearms, strong gun safety laws, and by supporting youth with open, honest conversations about mental health.”

Additional key findings from the report:

• The suicide rate among young people has increased almost every year since 2007. 
• Between 2019 and 2020, the firearm suicide rate among young people ages 10 to 24 increased 15 percent. 
• For adolescents, the firearm suicide rate in 2020 was the highest reported by the CDC since 1968 — a 31 percent increase from 2019. 
• Boys and young men are disproportionately affected by firearm suicide, representing nearly nine out of ten victims. 
• The firearm suicide rate among young American Indians and Alaska Natives is four times higher than that of the group with the lowest rate (Asians and Pacific Islanders).
• In the last decade, states with the highest rates of youth firearm suicide include Alaska, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, and New Mexico. States with the fastest-growing youth firearm suicide rates include Indiana, Colorado, Missouri, Georgia, and New Mexico. 

Preventing suicide among young people in the U.S. requires a multi-faceted approach that includes the following recommendations:

• Implement policies that limit easy and immediate access to firearms by those who are at risk of suicide.
• Know the risk factors and warning signs to look for when a loved one may be contemplating suicide.
• Learn how to talk about mental health with the people in your life.
• Get help. Reach out for free and confidential support when you, a loved one, or a peer needs to talk to someone.

Resources for journalists on responsibly covering gun suicide are available here. More information about gun suicide here. To speak with an expert or volunteers with Moms Demand Action, and / or Students Demand Action, please do not hesitate to reach out. 

If you or someone you know is in crisis, please contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, a national network of local crisis centers that provides free and confidential emotional support to people in suicidal crisis or emotional distress 24/7. 1-800-273-TALK (8255) suicidepreventionlifeline.org. You may also contact the Crisis Text Line, which provides trained crisis counseling services over text 24/7. Text HOME to 741741 from anywhere in the US crisistextline.org

Free and confidential mental health, suicide prevention, and crisis intervention services and resources are also available to people in-need of help, loved ones of those in-need, and frontline workers through the Pandemic Crisis Services Response Coalition at https://www.covidmentalhealthsupport.org