Nonfatal Firearm Violence: Threats and Injuries in Families
When a firearm is used in a nonlethal manner in incidents of domestic violence, this may be called a nonfatal firearm injury or threat. In incidents of DV-related nonfatal firearm injury or threat, the firearm is used to threaten or strike the victim or it can be brandished or displayed in front of a victim in an attempt to coerce them.
Nonfatal firearm injuries, both intentional and unintentional, account for many more emergency department cases than fatalities. During 2009–2017, there were approximately 2.5 times the number of emergency department visits for nonfatal firearm injury (85,694) compared to fatalities (34,538; Kaufman et al., 2021).
There are many incidents of domestic violence (DV) in which a firearm is used in a nonlethal manner that do not reach an emergency department. These nonfatal firearm injuries or threats are common in DV (Sorenson, 2017). Of 35,413 DV incidents reported to police in a large city, 1.6% involved a gun. In such circumstances, guns were used most often (69.1%) to threaten or intimidate the victims, the gun was brandished in 42.4% of the gun-involved incidents, and in 26.7% the offender threatened to shoot the victim, but did not do so. Nonfatal firearm injuries constitute an important public health problem for DV victims. Providers need to be prepared to screen clients for firearm-related risks and take steps to prevent firearm-related accidents.
References
Kaufman, E. J., Wiebe, D. J., Xiong, R. A., Morrison, C. N., Seamon, M. J., & Delgado, M. K. (2021). Epidemiologic trends in fatal and nonfatal firearm injuries in the US, 2009-2017. JAMA Internal Medicine, 181(2), 237–244.
Sorenson, S. B. (2017). Guns in intimate partner violence: Comparing incidents by type of weapon. Journal of Women’s Health (Larchmt), 26(3), 249–258.