Reducing Youth Gun Violence

Gun violence in the United States has become an epidemic. From the
Civil War to the present, 567,000 Americans have died in combat; but
since 1920, over 1 million American civilians have been killed by
firearms (Pacific Center, 1994). Among teenagers 15 to 19 years old,
the problem of gun violence is particularly alarming: one of every
four deaths is attributable to a firearm injury. What is causing this
epidemic of violence, and how can we stop it?

To better focus U.S. Attorneys’ violence prevention efforts and help
States and jurisdictions respond more effectively to this national
crisis, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention
(OJJDP) has developed this report. The first of two reports assessing
innovative and effective violence prevention programs across the
country, Reducing Youth Gun Violence discusses a wide array of
strategies—from school-based prevention to gun market interception.
Relevant research, evaluation, and legislation are included to ground
these programs and to provide readers a context for their successful
implementation.

Reducing Youth Gun Violence is divided into four sections: an executive
summary, a directory of youth gun violence reduction programs, a
directory of youth gun violence prevention organizations, and a bibliography
of research, evaluation, and publications on youth and guns. A
description of each section follows.