Ashley Wolf, MD
Assistant Professor Pediatric Critical Care
Rush University Medical Center
Chicago, Illinois, United States
Disclosure information not submitted.
Farah Rahman, MPH
Medical Student
Boston Children's and Boston Medical Center
Disclosure information not submitted.
Brice Jones, MBA
MPH Candidate
Loyola University Chicago, United States
Disclosure information not submitted.
Marisela Angulo
MPH Candidate
University of Illinois at Chicago, United States
Disclosure information not submitted.
Title: Chicago Firearm Deaths During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Introduction: Due to the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, Chicago issued a “stay at home” (SAH) order. The impact of SAH orders on firearm violence is unknown, but previous social and economic stressors have been associated with increased violence. Chicago also had increased firearm purchases during this time, a risk factor for homicide and suicide. We hypothesized there would be a greater number of both firearm homicides and suicides in Chicago during the COVID-19 pandemic and SAH order.
Methods: We conducted a retrospective review of the Cook County Medical Examiner’s database from January-June of 2016-2020. We collected demographic and location data on all firearm deaths. We compared deaths during the 2020 COVID-19 Pandemic and SAH order to the previous 4 years.
Results: There were 440 firearm deaths, 365 homicides and 75 suicides January-June 2020. The majority of homicides occurred in Black (71%) persons aged 25-34 (38%) and 15-24 (34%) on Chicago’s South and West sides, similar to prior years. 2020 had 29% more homicides compared to the prior 4 year average. Homicides increased over March-June, and June 2020 had 103 homicides, the highest monthly total over the 5 year period. 2020 had a similar number of firearm suicides, 75, compared to prior years (64-83). The majority of suicides occurred in White (53%) persons aged >65 (24%) and 25-34 (23%). A higher percentage of suicides in 2020 occurred in non-white persons and persons aged 25-34. March-May 2020 during the SAH order saw 23% fewer suicides, followed by 19 suicides in June, the highest monthly number over the study period.
Conclusion: Chicago saw increased firearm homicides during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic and SAH order. These homicides continue to disproportionately affect young, Black men. There were overall similar numbers of firearm homicides, with months during the SAH order seeing fewer suicides and the month following the SAH seeing more suicides.