DENVER — States that have adopted stronger gun control legislation experience lower rates of in-home pediatric firearm homicides, according to research presented during the American Academy of Pediatrics 2025 National Conference & Exhibition at the Colorado Convention Center Sept. 26-30.
The research, "Killed in Their Own Homes: The Rise of Pediatric Firearm In-Home Homicides and Association with State Firearm Laws," examined data from the National Violent Death Reporting System and U.S. Census Bureau from 2005 to 2021, focusing on pediatric in-home firearm homicides. The pool was then narrowed to only include the 14 states with consistent data covering the entirety of the study.
Researchers found that during the years examined, there were 3,289 firearm-related homicides across 14 states, including 2,633 (80.0%) among teenagers ages 13-17 years and 656 (20.0%) among children ages 12 and younger. The numbers represent a rate of in-home firearm-related homicide ranging from 0.18 homicides per 100,000 children and adolescents in 2010 (the lowest rate observed in the 17-year timeframe) to 0.48 homicides per 100,000 in 2020. These homicides were often reported alongside incidents of child abuse and intimate partner violence.
Researchers examined which of the 14 states had the strongest gun control laws. They found that extreme risk protection order laws, often called red flag laws where family members or law enforcement can petition the court to remove firearms from the home of someone they believe to be at risk, were in place in five of the seven states with the lowest rates of in-home homicide. By contrast, only two of seven states with the highest rates of in-home homicide had such laws.
Authors state that federal gun control laws may not be sufficient to curtail these incidents and suggest strengthening laws at the state level.
"Given evidence that stronger state firearm laws are associated with fewer pediatric in-home homicides, future advocacy should seek to expand gun laws, including extreme risk protection orders which may prevent these cases by removing firearms from high-risk households," said research author Jordan Rook, MD.
The authors conducted research through the American Pediatric Surgical Association and American Academy of Pediatrics Advocacy Committee.
