Baltimore Sun

Worldwide gun deaths reach 250,000 yearly; U.S. ranks high

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Gun deaths worldwide total about 250,000 yearly and the United States is among just six countries that make up half of those fatalities, a study found.

The results from one of the most comprehens­ive analyses of firearm deaths reveal “a major public health problem for humanity,” according to an editorial published with the study Tuesday in the Journal of the American Medical Associatio­n.

Although recent headlines make it seem like gun killings are surging globally, the new figures tell a more nuanced story.

Researcher­s counted about 209,000 gun deaths in 1990 compared to 251,000 in 2016. The average rate, about 4 per 100,000 people, was mostly unchanged.

Two-thirds of the deaths in 2016 were homicides, although the U.S. is among wealthy countries where suicides by gun outnumber gun killings, the study found.

There were larger increases in many of the 195 countries involved in the study, particular­ly in Central America and South America, where the rates reached nearly 40 per 100,000 in some places.

Brazil, Colombia, Guatemala, Mexico and Venezuela are the countries that with the U.S. contribute­d to half the study deaths.

About 9 percent of global gun deaths were accidental, the study said.

Gun deaths in the U.S. climbed from 35,800 in 1990 to 37,200 in 2016, but the rate dipped slightly to 11 per 100,000. Gun suicides increased from 19,700 to 23,800, the second-highest rate at just over 6 deaths per 100,000. Greenland had the highest, 22 per 100,000, but that amounted to just 11 suicides.

 ?? PAUL SANCYA/GETTY-AFP ?? Fans were able honor the legendary Aretha Franklin on Tuesday during a two-day public viewing at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in Detroit. The singer died Aug. 16; her funeral is on Friday.
PAUL SANCYA/GETTY-AFP Fans were able honor the legendary Aretha Franklin on Tuesday during a two-day public viewing at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in Detroit. The singer died Aug. 16; her funeral is on Friday.

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