FBI Black Homicide Rates 3 Times Nat'l Rate

WASHINGTON --Missouri leads the nation in the rate of black homicide victimization according to a new analysis of unpublished Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Supplementary Homicide Report (SHR) data released today by the Violence Policy Center (VPC).

The annual study, “Black Homicide Victimization in the United States: An Analysis of 2008 Homicide Data,” uses the most recent data available from the FBI--and ranks the 50 states according to their black homicide victimization rates. The study found overwhelmingly that firearms, usually handguns, were the weapon of choice in the homicides.

The top five states with each state's corresponding black homicide victimization rate are:

1) Missouri, 39.90 per 100,000;
2) Pennsylvania, 31.05 per 100,000;
3) Indiana, 28.71 per 100,000;
4) Michigan, 24.50 per 100,000; and,
5) Tennessee, 22.59 per 100,000.

Josh Sugarmann, VPC executive director and study co-author states, "While Missouri has the highest rate of black homicide victimization, across the nation this is a long-ignored crisis that is devastating black teens and adults."

For MISSOURI, the study found that in 2008:

* There were 287 black homicide victims, resulting in a homicide rate of 39.90 per 100,000. Of these, 246 were male and 41 were female.

* For homicides in which the weapon used could be identified, 87 percent of black victims (237 out of 273) were killed with guns. Of these, 50 percent (118 victims) were known to be killed with handguns. There were 108 victims killed with firearms where the type of gun was not stated. There were 21 victims killed with knives or other cutting instruments, three victims killed by bodily force, and nine victims killed by a blunt object.

* For homicides involving black victims for which the victim to offender relationship could be identified, 78 percent of black victims (77 out of 99) were murdered by someone they knew. Twenty-two victims were killed by strangers.

* For homicides involving black victims for which the circumstances could be identified, 55 percent (62 out of 113) were not related to the commission of any other felony. Of these, 81 percent (50 homicides) involved arguments between the victim and the offender.

For the entire UNITED STATES, the study found that in 2008:

* There were 6,841 black homicide victims in the United States. Of these, 5,878 were male, and 961 were female.

* The homicide rate for black victims in the United States was 18.07 per 100,000. In comparison, the overall national homicide rate was 4.93 per 100,000 and the national homicide rate for whites was 2.99 per 100,000.

* For homicides in which the weapon used could be identified, 82 percent of black victims (5,308 out of 6,445) were killed with guns. Of these, 72 percent (3,843 victims) were killed with handguns. There were 653 victims killed with knives or other cutting instruments, 248 victims killed by bodily force, and 150 victims killed by a blunt object.

* For homicides in which the victim to offender relationship could be identified, 75 percent of black victims (2,398 out of 3,206) were murdered by someone they knew. Eight hundred eight victims were killed by strangers.

* For homicides involving black victims for which the circumstances could be identified, 71 percent (2,892 out of 4,099) were not related to the commission of any other felony. Of these, 56 percent (1,608 homicides) involved arguments between the victim and the offender. Eleven percent (330 homicides) were reported to be gang-related. Thirty-five percent of gang-related homicides (116 homicides) were in California, which may be in part due to more comprehensive reporting. In California, 46 percent of non-felony related homicides were reported to be gang-related.