SACRAMENTO – The start of August has been marked by yet another deadly week as gun violence killed and wounded many across California. Gun violence continues to be the leading cause of death for children, teenagers, and college-aged people.
A snapshot of gun violence in California this week:
- ANAHEIM: On Thursday, a 72-year-old man shot and killed his wife who was pronounced dead at the scene when first responders arrived. According to reports the man arrested was identified as an Orange County Superior Court judge.
- LOS ANGELES: On Thursday, according to reports, a man pulled out a gun after a fight broke out on the metro. He was later fatally stabbed and the perpetrator was arrested shortly after.
- IRVINE: On Thursday, a person was shot and killed by an attacker in a neighboring car. According to authorities, the victim met up with a person in a black sedan and entered the vehicle on the passenger side, when a white car pulled up and opened fire on the victim’s side of the car, fatally shooting and killing the passenger.
- OAKLAND: On Wednesday, a man was shot and killed. According to local reports, the fatality is the 64th homicide investigated this year by Oakland police.
- FRESNO: On Tuesday, a woman was shot and killed and three others were wounded. According to reports, a vehicle that was possibly involved in the shooting crashed into another car on Brawley and Weber, causing both to catch fire.
- COSTA MESA: On Tuesday, one person was shot and killed and another was injured in a car-to-car shooting in Diamond Bar, authorities said.
While in the Los Angeles neighborhood of Watts, a recent wave of gun violence has resulted in two people shot and killed, and nine others wounded near the Imperial Courts and Jordan Downs public housing projects. Watts is the latest example of how communities of color bear the brunt of gun violence. According to Everytown Research, Black Americans are disproportionately impacted by gun violence. They experience 10 times the gun homicides, 18 times the gun assault injuries, and nearly 3 times the fatal shootings by police of white Americans.
Community violence intervention programs provide evidence-based and community-informed, comprehensive support to individuals who are at greatest risk of gunshot victimization. The Everytown Community Safety Fund supports community-based violence intervention programs implementing evidence-based strategies to reduce gun violence, like Youth Alive! in Oakland, and The Build Program in Los Angeles. In Sacramento, Senators have yet to vote on AB-28, the measure to establish the Gun Violence Prevention, Healing and Recovery Fund to provide vital resources to life-saving programs — including the California Violence Intervention and Prevention (CalVIP) grant program, supported by a modest industry tax on businesses selling firearms and ammunition.
In an average year, 3,253 people die by guns in California, the 6th lowest gun death rate in the country. Statistics about gun violence in California are available here, and Everytown’s Gun Law Rankings – which shows California’s gun laws are the strongest in the country – is available here.