The Policy and Research team presents the first data publication under our Multi-Year Agenda focus: The GBC Collective Impact: Gun Violence Reduction Report January – June 2023. Gun violence is defined as a non-fatal shooting or a homicide with a firearm. This report will be updated monthly and is designed to help our stakeholders understand the different factors related to this critical public safety issue.
Through the first six months of 2023, the 15.7% reduction in gun violence is the largest since 2015, when reliable shooting data was first made available to the public. This includes a 23.1% reduction in firearm homicides and a 12.4% reduction in non-fatal shootings. The reduction in gun violence really started to take effect in September of 2022. The largest reductions were seen in the Northwest, Western, and Southern parts of the of the city. From a police district standpoint, the three largest reductions were seen in police districts (Northwest, Eastern, and Southern) that have not yet formally adopted the Group Violence Reduction Strategy which is a nationally recognized deterrence strategy focusing resources on individuals identified as being at the highest risk of involvement in gun violence.
The number of high school aged youth gun violence victims (13 to 18) has skyrocketed over the past 2 years, doubling in 2022 and increasing another 17% in 2023 compared to 2022. For years, high school aged youth represented six to eight percent of all gun violence victims and now comprise one out of every six gun violence victims.
Based on the data above, it is clear there is much work to do, more detailed areas to explore, and the GBC needs your help to address the important goal of reducing gun violence in the city. There will be other publications that will dive deeper into specific gun violence policies, programs, and data points and you can be a pivotal contribution to the content and focus areas of this crucial mission.
If you are a GBC Partner interested in joining our Steering Committee around this issue, you can email partner@gbc.org or sign-up to receive news and information through the following link: bit.ly/46yt34o
Sincerely,
Jeffrey Zuback Public Safety Data Officer
