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Murder in the US - number of victims by weapon 2018
Murder in the US - number of victims by weapon 2018
Number of murder victims in the United States in 2018, by weapon
by Statista Research Department,
last edited
Sep 30, 2019
Which weapon is predominantly used in murder cases?
In the United States, handguns are predominantly used in murder cases, with 6,603 cases in 2018 alone. This is followed by firearms (type not stated) and knives or cutting instruments with 2,963 and 1,515 cases respectively in 2018.Murder in the U.S.
The majority of murders in the U.S. are committed under unknown circumstances, and murders due to arguments come in as the second most common circumstance. Despite these gruesome facts, the violent crime rate has fallen significantly since 1990, and the United States is much safer than it was in the 1980s and 1990s.
Leading cause of death
The death rate in the U.S. has hovered around the same level since 1990. Heart disease, cancer, and chronic lower respiratory diseases were the three leading causes of death in the country in 2016. The rate of death by heart disease is significantly higher than the homicide rate in the United States.
Number of murder victims in the United States in 2018, by weapon
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| Number of murder victims | |
|---|---|
| Handguns | 6,603 |
| Firearms, type not stated | 2,963 |
| Knives or cutting instruments | 1,515 |
| Other weapons or weapons not stated | 900 |
| Personal weapons (hands, fists, feet, etc.)* | 672 |
| Blunt objects (clubs, hammers, etc.) | 443 |
| Rifles | 297 |
| Shotguns | 235 |
| Other guns | 167 |
| Asphyxiation | 90 |
| Narcotics | 78 |
| Fire | 72 |
| Strangulation | 70 |
| Drowning | 9 |
| Poison | 5 |
| Explosives | 4 |
| Number of murder victims | |
|---|---|
| Handguns | 6,603 |
| Firearms, type not stated | 2,963 |
| Knives or cutting instruments | 1,515 |
| Other weapons or weapons not stated | 900 |
| Personal weapons (hands, fists, feet, etc.)* | 672 |
| Blunt objects (clubs, hammers, etc.) | 443 |
| Rifles | 297 |
| Shotguns | 235 |
| Other guns | 167 |
| Asphyxiation | 90 |
| Narcotics | 78 |
| Fire | 72 |
| Strangulation | 70 |
| Drowning | 9 |
| Poison | 5 |
| Explosives | 4 |
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by Statista Research Department,
last edited
Sep 30, 2019
Which weapon is predominantly used in murder cases?
In the United States, handguns are predominantly used in murder cases, with 6,603 cases in 2018 alone. This is followed by firearms (type not stated) and knives or cutting instruments with 2,963 and 1,515 cases respectively in 2018.Murder in the U.S.
The majority of murders in the U.S. are committed under unknown circumstances, and murders due to arguments come in as the second most common circumstance. Despite these gruesome facts, the violent crime rate has fallen significantly since 1990, and the United States is much safer than it was in the 1980s and 1990s.
Leading cause of death
The death rate in the U.S. has hovered around the same level since 1990. Heart disease, cancer, and chronic lower respiratory diseases were the three leading causes of death in the country in 2016. The rate of death by heart disease is significantly higher than the homicide rate in the United States.
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- Release date
- September 2019
- Region
- United States
- Survey time period
- 2018
- Supplementary notes
- *Pushed is included in personal weapons.
- Open this statistic in...
Source
- Show sources information
- Show publisher information
- Release date
- September 2019
More information
- Region
- United States
- Survey time period
- 2018
- Supplementary notes
- *Pushed is included in personal weapons.
- Open this statistic in...
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