Gun violence

Gun violence may be broadly defined as a category of violence and crime committed with the use of a firearm; it may or may not include actions ruled as self-defense, actions for law enforcement, or the safe lawful use of firearms for sport, hunting, and target practice. Gun violence encompasses intentional crime characterized as homicide (although not all homicide is automatically a crime) and assault with a deadly weapon, as well as unintentional injury and death resulting from the misuse of firearms, sometimes by children and adolescents. Gun violence statistics also may include self-inflicted gunshot wounds (both suicide, attempted suicide and suicide/homicide combinations sometimes seen within families). Not included in this subject are statistics regarding military or para-military activities, the information applies to the actions of civilians.

The phrase "gun crime" is consistently used by both gun-control and gun-rights policy advocates, with differing emphases: the former group advocates reducing gun violence by enacting and enforcing regulations on guns, gun owners, and the gun industry, while the latter group advocates education on how to be a responsible gun owner.

Levels of gun violence vary greatly across the world, with very high rates in Brazil, Venezuela, Mexico, South Africa, Colombia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Jamaica, as well as high levels in Russia, The Philippines, Thailand, and some other underdeveloped countries. Levels of gun violence are very low in Singapore and Japan, and are low in New Zealand, the United Kingdom and many other countries. The United States has the highest rate of gun related injuries (not deaths per capita) among developed countries, though it also has the highest rate of gun ownership and the highest rate of officers.

Suicide
Some research shows an association between household firearm ownership and gun suicide rates. For example, it was found that individuals in a firearm owning home are close to five times more likely to commit suicide than those individuals who do not own firearms. However, other research found a statistical association among a group of fourteen developed nations but that statistical association was lost when additional countries were included. During the 1980s and early 1990s, there was a strong upward trend in adolescent suicides with a gun, as well as a sharp overall increase in suicides among those age 75 and over. In the United States, where suicides outnumber homicides 2:1, firearms remain the most common method of suicide, accounting for 52.1% of all suicides committed during 2005.

Research also indicates no association vis-à-vis safe-storage laws of guns that are owned, and gun suicide rates, and studies that attempt to link gun ownership to likely victimology often fail to account for the presence of guns owned by other people leading to a conclusion that safe-storage laws do not appear to affect gun suicide rates or juvenile accidental gun death.

Homicide
Homicide is defined as the intentional and illegal death caused by one individual on another and in this case with a firearm. In a study by the United Nations released in 2009, it was found that worldwide firearms were used in an average of 60% of all homicides. In 2010 USA homicides, guns are the weapon of choice, especially for multiple homicides.

Robbery and assault
The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime defines robbery as the theft of property by force or threat of force. Assault is defined as a physical attack against the body of another person resulting in serious bodily injury. In the case of gun violence, the definitions become more specific and include only robbery and assault committed with the use of a firearm. Firearms are used in this threatening capacity four to six times more than firearms used as a means of protection in fighting crime.

In terms of occurrence, developed countries have similar rates of assaults and robberies with firearms, which is a different trend than homicides by firearms.

Costs of violence committed with guns
Violence committed with guns leads to significant monetary costs. Phillip J. Cook estimated that such violence costs the USA $100 billion annually. Emergency medical care is a major contributor to the monetary costs of such violence. It was determined in a study that for every firearm death in the USA for one year from 1 June 1992, an average of three firearm-related injuries were treated in hospital emergency departments.

Psychological costs of violence committed with guns are also clearly documented. James Garbarino found that individuals who experience violence are prone to mental and other health problems, such as post-traumatic stress disorder and sleep deprivation. These problems increase for those who experience violence as children.