Every day in America, 14 children aged 19 and under are killed in gun homicides, suicides, and unintentional shootings. For every child killed by a gun, four more are wounded. .
Each year, nearly 1,500 children are rushed to hospital emergency rooms with accidental gun injuries. In 1994, nearly 200 children died from such wounds.
In 1994, approximately 70 percent of the murder victims aged 15 to 17 years old were killed with a handgun. .
400 children die every year from accidental shootings 3,000 children receive non-fatal injuries .
in 1998 nearly 700,000 violent crimes were committed w/ firearms.
American households contained 192 million firearms in 1994, of which 65 million were handguns .
Guns in Schools.
.
Gun violence among young people continues, despite the fact that it is illegal for anyone under 21 to buy a handgun and anyone under 18 to buy a rifle or shotgun. This increased violence among young people has created an atmosphere of fear that has driven more young people to carry weapons.
According to a recent report issued by the Department of Education, over 6,000 students were expelled in 1996-1997 for bringing guns to their public schools.
A 1995 survey conducted by the Center for Disease Control found that two in 25 high school students reported having carried a gun in the last 30 days.
Public health researchers now explain the phenomenon of youth gun-carrying through a contagion model. .
General Facts:.
Licensing and registration: 35 states have neither licensing nor registration for any type of gun. Only one state, Massachusetts, has both licensing and registration for all guns. .
Background checks: 32 states require no background checks when a handgun is purchased from an unlicensed seller, whether over the back fence or at a gun show. 44 states require no background checks when a rifle or shotgun is bought from an unlicensed seller.
Children: Seven states have no legal minimum age for a child buying rifles or shotguns from an unlicensed seller: Connecticut, New Mexico, New Hampshire, Kansas, Alabama, Georgia, Maine.
