Women

We analyzed the relationship between firearm availability and unintentional gun death, homicide and suicide for women across the 50 states over a ten-year period.  Women in states with many guns have elevated rates of unintentional gun deaths, suicides and homicides, particularly firearm suicides and firearm homicides.

Miller, Matthew; Azrael, Deborah; Hemenway, David.  Firearm availability and unintentional firearm deaths, suicide, and homicide among women.  Journal of Urban Health.  2002; 79:26-38.

We analyzed the relationship between gun availability and homicides of women with data from 25 high-income countries. Across developed nations, where gun are more available, there are more homicides of women.  The United States has the most firearms and U.S. women are far more likely to be homicide victims than women in other developed countries.

Hemenway, David; Shinoda-Tagawa, Tomoko; Miller, Matthew.  Firearm availability and female homicide victimization rates across 25 populous high-income countries.  Journal of the American Medical Women’s Association.  2002; 57:100-04

We analyzed data on 9.5 million California women living with co-habitants in a handgun free home. Between 2004-2016, for over 330,000 of these women, a co-habitant brought a handgun into the home. Over 2,000 of these women died by suicide. Their excess suicide rate was accounted for by higher rates of suicide by firearm. Women with and without handguns in the home had similar rates of non-firearm suicide. Keeping a handgun in the home increases the risk of completed suicide to non-owners.

Miller M, Zhang Y, Prince L, Swanson SA, Wintemute GJ, Holsinger EE, Studdert DM. Suicide deaths among women in California living with handgun owners vs those living with other adults in handgun-free homes, 2004-2016. JAMA Psychiatry. 2022; 79:582-588.