At Fort Wayne’s first youth-led summit on gun violence, high schoolers described shootings that have shaped their lives, and challenged community leaders to do more. Read more: thetr.ac/5QuHV

On July Fourth, there were 139 shootings in the United States, resulting in 35 deaths and 187 injuries, according to Gun Violence Archive. The total number of July Fourth shootings is down from last year, when there were 153 shooting incidents.

In 2021, Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott proposed his signature violence reduction plan. Similar strategies had failed in the 1990s and 2014. But the third time’s the charm. It’s been five years since the Group Violence Reduction Strategy launched, and violence in the city has greatly dropped.

The Fourth of July is a notably violent day in the calendar year, being the first major holiday of the summer. Though there were 139 shootings this past Independence Day, that number is still lower than last year. Read more: thetr.ac/nxZE8

In Fort Wayne, the Fourth of July weekend brought in two shootings on the south side, which left two dead and eight injured. The violence came a week after the city’s first youth-led summit on gun violence, where attendees addressed rising rates of shootings among young people and how to stop it.

Through the first six months of 2026, Baltimore logged 50 homicides — the fewest during the first half of a calendar year since at least the 1960s. A new evaluation found strong evidence that this progress is linked to the city’s Group Violence Reduction Strategy. Read more: thetr.ac/mmfLw

An ICE agent killed a Houston resident during a traffic stop this week. His death marks at least the seventh fatal shooting by federal immigration agents since President Donald Trump’s return to the White House in January 2025.

In Fort Wayne, Indiana, the first youth-led summit on gun violence brought out 60 high schoolers who shared how shootings affected their lives. Adults and organizers were open and willing to hear about their experience. This is what they learned.

Police shoot and kill pet dogs far more often than you think. According to the Animal Legal Defense Fund, shooting a dog is one of the most common reasons officers discharge their firearms in the line of duty.

In 2021, New York enacted a law that classified the improper marketing or sale of guns as a “public nuisance” and mandated that gun companies more carefully monitor the distribution and marketing of their guns. Rhode Island may pass its own version of the law this year.

In 2019, artistic producer Michael Cotey created ENOUGH! Plays to End Gun Violence. The program produces plays about gun violence written by teens and sets up performances throughout the country each year. The program is just one example of how people are using theater to examine gun violence.

In 2022, Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott launched the Group Violence Reduction Strategy. Five years later, homicides in Baltimore are at a historic low. Similar strategies failed in the 1990s and in 2014. What worked this time?

On July 7, an ICE agent fatally shot Lorenzo Salgado Araujo in Houston. It was at least the 26th time that immigration agents shot at someone since Trump’s operations began last year, and numbers among at least 72 gun-related incidents connected to Trump’s domestic immigration deployments.

Gun violence has plummeted in Baltimore — along with other crimes. Yes, violence is falling nationwide. But Baltimore is outpacing the nation. And unlike other cities, it never had a COVID violence spike to begin with. So this is much more than a "return to normal." My latest for @thetrace.org

America's 250th birthday was marred by gun violence — but not as much as in past years. There were 139 shootings in the U.S. on July 4th, down slightly from last year, and down considerably from 5 years ago.

At Fort Wayne’s first youth-led violence summit, high school students described shootings that have shaped their lives, and challenged community leaders to do more.

Independence Day celebrations across the country were marred by shootings — but not as many as in years’ past.

“Stand up if you know someone who’s been affected by community violence”. Nearly every student stood. I spent time at Fort Wayne’s first youth-led violence summit, where teenagers challenged adults to listen and do more about shootings in their communities. Latest for @thetrace.org

Among the most severely injured gunshot patients in Florida, the uninsured stayed three fewer days in the hospital on average than those with insurance. A new yearlong investigation by The Trace and KFF Health shows that insurance coverage heavily influences hospital stays for survivors.

A growing body of research suggests that Baltimore’s approach to reducing shootings at scale may be one of the most effective yet.

Guns to Gardens has been turning unwanted firearms into garden tools and art for over a decade. Since 2013, this faith-based safe disposal movement has destroyed and repurposed an estimated 13,000-plus guns across the country.

The Philadelphia Police Department revoked nearly 2,200 gun carry licenses last year, more than double the number from 2021. In June, the Justice Department launched an investigation into whether the police were using vague standards to revoke gun carry licenses.

On July 1, the Department of Justice sued to overturn Virginia’s newly enacted assault weapons ban. The DOJ also sued to overturn California’s ban on firearms that can easily be modified with machine gun conversion devices.

As expected, DOJ sued to overturn Virginia's new assault weapons ban — and also sued California over its "Glock ban" and handgun roster. That makes 7 gun-related suits from the Civil Rights Division, which historically enforced anti-discrimination statutes. My latest w/@bychipbrownlee.com:

A Georgia jury found Colin Gray guilty of all 29 charges, including two counts of second-degree murder, for supplying the rifle his son allegedly used in the 2024 Apalachee High School shooting. Gray, 55, now faces up to 180 years in prison.

Among the most severely injured gunshot patients in Florida, the uninsured stayed three fewer days in the hospital on average than those with insurance. A yearlong investigation by The Trace and KFF Health shows that insurance coverage heavily influences hospital stays for survivors: thetr.ac/GrAEG

The Gun Violence Data Hub, an initiative of The Trace, provides support, resources, and reliable data to newsrooms, researchers, and the public.

In the first State of the Union of Trump’s second term, the president continued to make baseless claims about crime. He said D.C. is now one of the safest cities due to his troop deployment. He also baselessly portrayed immigrants as criminals. We debunked these claims.

On July 1, the Department of Justice sued to overturn Virginia’s newly enacted assault weapons ban. The DOJ also sued to overturn California’s ban on firearms that can easily be modified with machine gun conversion devices. Read more: thetr.ac/TpEK0

In Florida, uninsured gunshot patients have 25 percent shorter hospital stays on average than those with private insurance, according to our analysis. The damage can be lasting: Patients who leave the hospital too soon after a traumatic injury have a higher risk of serious complications.

From 2017: What goes up must come down.

The Philadelphia Police Department revoked nearly 2,200 gun carry licenses last year, more than double the number from 2021. In June, the Justice Department launched an investigation into whether the police were using vague standards to revoke gun carry licenses. Read more: thetr.ac/z5ytA

Get the latest on gun policy, research, and violence prevention — from the hyperlocal to the national level — and new stories from The Trace delivered straight to your inbox.

Federal courts have now ruled on more than 3,300 challenges to gun laws since the Supreme Court’s 2022 Bruen decision. The milestone underscores how thoroughly Bruen has reshaped federal gun litigation and fueled a surge in challenges to firearm restrictions.

Guns to Gardens has destroyed and repurposed more than 13,000 guns into garden tools and art. For some gun owners, the most valuable benefit of these church-hosted safe disposal events is the opportunity for healing, whether in the aftermath of a mass shooting or after losing someone to suicide.

Every 30 minutes, on average, someone is treated in an American emergency room for a firearm injury. Most experience a hospital stay to receive care. Being insured or not can greatly affect one’s access to care, a new yearlong investigation by The Trace and KFF Health News shows.

The DOJ has filed two lawsuits, alleging “unconstitutional” restrictions on Virginia’s newly enacted assault weapons ban, and California’s ban on firearms that can be modified into machine guns.

We published our first 50-page zine based on photographer Robert Gerhardt’s award-winning photo essay on Brownsville, Brooklyn — a community that’s struggled with persistent gun violence. It shares one of countless stories of how a community deals with gun violence. Now we want to hear your story.

A new study finds that mass shootings are often preventable and predictable. Researcher Jaclyn Schildkraut of the Regional Gun Violence Research Consortium at the Rockefeller Institute of Government tells us how to spot them.

This time next year, the Supreme Court could be striking down state assault weapons bans. The court has agreed to hear challenges to laws in Illinois and Connecticut. After relisting a bunch of AWB cases for weeks upon weeks, SCOTUS finally granted cert.

Over the past five years, the number of gun carry licenses revoked by the Philadelphia Police Department jumped nearly two and half times. The practice has brought on an investigation by the Justice Department.

After a term that produced two Second Amendment rulings, the Supreme Court is taking up yet another gun rights case.

Last December, the Justice Department opened a new office in its Civil Right Division called the Second Amendment Section. Its goal is to overturn firearm restrictions by opening lawsuits. Within six months, the department has sued several police departments, cities, and states in the US.

While no agency tracks police-involved canine shootings, the Department of Justice and animal advocacy groups have estimated that officers shoot and kill approximately 10,000 pet dogs every year — or about 25 to 30 dogs per day.

During the Juneteenth holiday, multiple shootings on Chicago’s South Side left eight people dead and dozens injured. Mayor Brandon Johnson announced a new Office of Gun Violence Reduction to make the city’s violence prevention work more permanent.

Federal courts have now ruled on more than 3,300 challenges to gun laws since the Supreme Court’s 2022 Bruen decision. The milestone underscores how thoroughly Bruen has reshaped federal gun litigation and fueled a surge in challenges to firearm restrictions.

"When uninsured patients arrive at hospitals in Florida with gunshot wounds, on average they spend significantly fewer days in the hospital — in some cases half the time — than those with health insurance" www.thetrace.org/2026/06/gun-...

The Trace and KFF Health News spent more than a year examining Florida hospital records, academic studies, and government documents for a first-of-its-kind analysis into how insurance status affects gunshot wound care.

When uninsured patients arrive at hospitals in Florida with gunshot wounds, on average they spend significantly fewer days in the hospital — in some cases half the time — than those with health insurance.

In 2025, Chicago recorded its fewest homicides in over 60 years. But the Juneteenth holiday was a reminder that gun violence is still a crisis in the city. The newly-formed Office of Gun Violence Reduction could take a centralized approach to reducing shootings. Read more: thetr.ac/gYWxE