Where do teens get the firearms they use in school-associated killings? According to a recent report, nearly 40% get them from home. The study covered 128 firearms used by 123 students in school-associated suicides and/or homicides between July, 1992, and June, 1999. Thirty-eight percent got their guns from home, 23% from a friend or relative, 16% from other sources, and in 23% of the cases the authorities didn't know where they got the firearms.
Other interesting findings: teens with guns from home were more likely to be associated with multiple victims rather than single victims (67% vs. 35%), and more were female than male (75% vs. 36%). More whites than perpetrators of other races (70% vs.17%) used guns from home
Parents who keep guns at home must store them securely Ð secure enough so their teens can't get to them.
Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 3/7/03, pp. 169-72.
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