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Five mass shootings have claimed the lives of 27 people in California since the first day of the year, in a tragic month for a state known for its extensive gun restrictions.
The Half Moon Bay and Monterey Park shootings accounted for most of those deaths, bringing the death toll from the two mass shootings to 19 as of Tuesday afternoon.
From historical data Gun Violence Archives California has seen more mass shooting-related deaths than any other month since at least 2013, the data show.
Like this month, previous mass shootings have claimed countless lives in the state. December 2015, Single terrorist attack in San Bernardino 16 people were killed and dozens were injured.In San Jose, a 2021 mass shooting at a rail yard claimed 10 lives and became Deadliest shooting in San Francisco Bay Area history.
This Gun Violence Archives Defining a mass shooting as an incident involving four or more people injured or killed, which may include lesser-known incidents, but resulting in no fatalities but multiple serious injuries—Like the one in SF’s Mission District where four people were shot Earlier this month, one was killed.
The file states that generally Gun violence — including incidents not classified as mass shootings — has killed 12,974 in California Between 2014 and 2023, there will be 373 mass shootings and 25 mass murders. Their data shows that roughly 4,627 people have been killed in mass shootings across the country over the past decade.
While 27 homicides makes the month an outlier in terms of severity, sadly, the number of mass shootings is not uncommon.
While there’s no reason to believe mass shootings in the state will continue at January’s pace, the month’s death toll far exceeds the state’s monthly average since 2019.
National crisis despite draconian laws
The string of tragedies brings the nation to 39 mass shootings this year, a 63 percent increase from the same period last year, when 24 shootings occurred between Jan. 1 and Jan. 24.
The two recent fatal shootings occurred in a state known for its strict gun control laws.
california consistently ranked among the states Gun violence has the lowest death rate associated with gun violence, with less than 10 gun deaths per 100,000 people in 2020, according to the CDC. Between 1981 and 2020, California is one of only two states Gun deaths have declined over time, report saysThe other is New York, another highly restrictive state.
Some experts point to efforts by lawmakers as one of the key factors behind The state’s relatively low number of gun deaths.
Gun control advocacy groups routinely list California as a gun-regulating state due to its ban on assault weapons, mandatory waiting periods and background checks The strictest gun laws in the nation. September 2022, California Attorney General Rob Bonta Announcing the Office of Gun Violence Preventionwhich aims to simplify the state’s approach to gun violence.
This The Nation’s Myriad Gun Control Laws Can’t Stop However, two mass killings rocked California this week and calls by state officials for the federal government to intervene in what is essentially a national crisis.But gun control lobbyists could face an uphill battle with federal courts, where the court has a strong conservative majority Continue to fight proposed gun restrictions in every state across the country.
on Monday, Gov. Gavin Newsom called the Second Amendment a “suicide pact,” Expressed dismay at the political gridlock that has kept guns in the streets and mass shootings a regular occurrence across the country. “Only in the United States,” Newsom said at a news conference in Half Moon Bay on Tuesday.
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