Many young people who visit the emergency room may be there because of a gun. Researchers surveyed nearly seven hundred people between fourteen and twenty-four years old treated in a hospital emergency department.
Nearly one in four said they’d had a gun in the past six months. Respondents admitted more than eighty percent of those guns were obtained illegally.
And one in five of these guns were either a semi-automatic or assault-style weapon. Boys involved in assaults were nearly three times more likely to report having a gun.
Also having a history of violent fights or using illegal drugs increased the odds a young person would have a gun. While the study cannot prove having a gun leads to violent behavior.
Researchers say their findings point to several possible ways to reduce the toll of gun violence on young people. Such as community-wide programs to get illegal firearms off the street. Findings appear in the august print issue of the journal “Pediatrics.”