Samantha Storey

Firearms were responsible for 20 percent of all child and teen deaths in the U.S. for both 2020 and 2021, compared to an average of less than 2 percent in similarly large and wealthy nations, according to a new KFF analysis. This puts the U.S. far ahead of peer nations in child and teen firearm deaths. Data show that U.S. firearm deaths for children and teens again surpassed motor vehicle deaths – the second leading cause of death – and that the increase has been primarily driven by gun assault deaths. On a per capita basis, the firearm mortality rate among children and teens in the U.S. is over 9.5 times the rate of Canada, the country with the second-highest child and teen firearm death rate. If firearm deaths in the U.S. had mirrored Canada’s rates between 2010 and 2021, approximately 30,000 U.S. children and teenagers would still be alive.

If you think Tylenol is bad for children’s health, wait until you see what guns do.

“You have all the kids who are texting their parents. You have parents who think they’re not gonna see their kids later. And that’s incredibly traumatizing. And you don’t know what kind of trauma that community experienced before that moment.” — Jaclyn Schildkraut, a school safety expert who directs a gun violence research group at the Rockefeller Institute of Government, on the psychological damage of school “swatting” incidents

School swatting incidents have accelerated in recent years. Experts say these hoaxes can traumatize students and first responders. thetr.ac/EryMr

Narratives About the Killing of Charlie Kirk May Be More Powerful Than the Facts Jeff Sharlet, the author of ‘The Undertow: Scenes from a Slow Civil War,’ talked to The Trace about making sense of this tense moment.

There's a lot of speculation about the motive of the man who killed Charlie Kirk. Regardless of what we learn, this assassination is an accelerant on an already burning fire.

"The question is how high it’s gonna burn and how much destruction it’s gonna do," @jeffsharlet.bsky.social tells me.

Narratives About the Killing of Charlie Kirk May Be More Powerful Than the Facts Jeff Sharlet, the author of ‘The Undertow: Scenes from a Slow Civil War,’ talked to The Trace about making sense of this tense moment.

Political violence like the Charlie Kirk assassination accelerates our march toward civil unrest — but it's not to late to stop it, @jeffsharlet.bsky.social tells my colleague @bychipbrownlee.com

When Domestic Violence Grant Funding Is Lost, What’s Plan B? DEK: Multiple sites are scrambling after the Trump administration canceled a program designed to help tackle the dangers posed by guns in domestic abuse situations.

Multiple sites around the country are scrambling after the Trump administration canceled funding for the Firearms Technical Assistance Project, a program that brings together community organizations to tackle the dangers posed by guns in domestic abuse situations. www.thetrace.org/2025/09/trum...

Trump Says Chicago Is Crime-Ridden. But Shootings Are Down 50 Percent Since His First Term. Chicagoans interviewed by The Trace say they’ve been feeling safer in their neighborhoods — and do not want intervention from ICE or the National Guard.

Rita Oceguera keeps a spotlight on disinfo for @thetrace.org

www.thetrace.org/2025/09/chic...

A Call to Protect Democracy From Political Violence Experts at the Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions consider what led to the current climate — and how we can change it.

From a prescient 2024 opinion piece in @thetrace.org :

"To counter the ideology that drives political violence, we must refrain from normalizing the permission structure that condones it. ... Political leaders bear a significant responsibility."

www.thetrace.org/2024/08/trum...

Bulletin: Could Cleanup Initiatives in Philadelphia Help Reduce the City's Gun Violence? Cleaner neighborhoods and green spaces point to a decline in crime.

Cleaner neighborhoods and green spaces point to a decline in crime. Could it help Philadelphia?

More Than 20 Active Shooting Hoaxes Have Locked Down Colleges Over the Past Two Weeks Experts said swatting incidents can traumatize students and first responders.

@jenmascia.bsky.social found there were at least 22 swatting hoaxes at American colleges just between the last week of August and early September. "Most of the calls involved an armed person in the library. Some featured gunshots in the background."
www.thetrace.org/2025/09/swat... #tellewa

Mass Shootings Data on mass shootings in the United States, from the Gun Violence Archive.

We have updated the Gun Violence Data Hub's page featuring data on mass shootings.

This data comes from the Gun Violence Archive, and uses their definition of "a minimum of four victims shot." You can find more information and download the data at this link
datahub.thetrace.org/dataset/mass...

Legal Constraints Could Stymie Trump’s Plans to Police Other Cities We spoke with a policing expert from Yale Law School about whether a federal takeover could come to New York or Chicago.

From a @thetrace.org Q&A with a Yale policing expert:

"If we were talking about a city and a state, the National Guard wouldn’t be able to exercise general police powers like making arrests or investigating crimes. Washington poses a very different issue."

www.thetrace.org/2025/08/trum...

Full story here:

The Armed Era You drop your child off at kindergarten where they learn how to hide from an active shooter. You spot a rifle-strapped shopper in the cereal aisle at the supermarket. You stuff your belongings in a cl...

Some helpful historical context from my colleagues @jenmascia.bsky.social and @bychipbrownlee.com on how we got here www.thetrace.org/2024/04/colu...

In light of today’s shooting in Minnesota, here’s a relevant bit from the gun industry’s own research, which I obtained earlier this summer

Legal Constraints Could Stymie Trump’s Plans to Police Other Cities We spoke with a policing expert from Yale Law School about whether a federal takeover could come to New York or Chicago.

"Under the Constitution, policing powers are reserved to the states. The federal government has very little legal authority to intrude on those powers."

Important context from Yale’s Jorge Camacho in this @thetrace.org Q&A by @jenmascia.bsky.social

Legal Constraints Could Stymie Trump’s Plans to Police Other Cities We spoke with a policing expert from Yale Law School about whether a federal takeover could come to New York or Chicago.

In a Q&A with a law and policing expert, @jenmascia.bsky.social explores limits to further crackdowns in Democratic cities that have opposed Trump.

www.thetrace.org/2025/08/trum...

They Rallied the Nation After the Parkland School Shooting. Years Later, Their Group Is Floundering. The gun reform group has been rocked by divisions, layoffs, and — most recently — a lawsuit alleging racism and retaliation.

An inside look from @vansant.bsky.social www.thetrace.org/2025/08/marc...

CDC Data Is Helping Combat Gun Violence. But It’s at Risk of Disappearing. As the Trump administration pushes deep cuts to the CDC, we’ve compiled 10 examples of how the agency’s gun violence work has shaped policy and prevention.

More CDC cuts could wipe out one of the most reliable sources of gun violence data. To show what’s at stake as Congress moves to enact the agency’s next budget, @thetrace.org compiled 10 examples of how the CDC’s gun violence work has helped reveal trends, shape interventions, and inform policy.

Claim: Washington D.C. hasn't had a murder since Trump sent in the troops on August 11.

Fact: There was a murder on August 13.

No murders since then — but there have been 7 shootings. A total of 8 people were wounded

www.gunviolencearchive.org/query/3378d4...

"The ongoing dispute exposed a foundational fracture in the city’s community violence intervention efforts. … That structural shift, according to several local activists, marked the beginning of a more top-down, enforcement-driven approach."

'It's a Bully Tactic': Minneapolis Violence Interrupters Stand Off With the City At the height of the racial justice protests in 2020, the Rev. Jerry McAfee was on the front lines in Minneapolis. When residents filled the streets after George Floyd’s murder, McAfee and other veter...

The latest from @josiahbates.bsky.social

www.thetrace.org/2025/08/minn...

What Would a More Effective Policing Strategy Look Like in D.C.? We spoke with crime prevention expert David Kennedy about the Trump administration’s takeover of law enforcement in the nation’s capital.

In the 1990s, John Jay professor David Kennedy pioneered a groundbreaking violence prevention strategy. @bychipbrownlee.com spoke to him about Trump's strategy to reduce crime in D.C. and what a more effective approach might look like.

They Rallied the Nation After the Parkland School Shooting. Years Later, Their Group Is Floundering. The gun reform group has been rocked by divisions, layoffs, and — most recently — a lawsuit alleging racism and retaliation.

March for Our Lives helped usher in major gun policy wins, but now faces new challenges. Layoffs, internal divides, and a lawsuit alleging racism all point to deeper questions about sustainability and leadership in young advocacy groups.

New @thetrace.org story by @vansant.bsky.social

They Rallied the Nation After the Parkland School Shooting. Years Later, Their Group Is Floundering. The gun reform group has been rocked by divisions, layoffs, and — most recently — a lawsuit alleging racism and retaliation.

March for Our Lives, an important youth mobilizer, has hit hard times. Quite hard. Details in my latest story:

www.thetrace.org/2025/08/marc...

These public radio stations have built online audiences that’ll help them survive federal cuts They may have been born on the airwaves, but these public media stations compete on the web as well. Here's our first monthly ranking of the top 25 local public media websites in the United States.

As a former homepage and engagement editor for NPR, I found @joshuabenton.com's latest Nieman Lab piece from their rankings of media (first local newspapers, then nonprofit news sites) takes a look at the top 25 local public media sites very insightful about the challenges ahead.

What Would a More Effective Policing Strategy Look Like in D.C.? We spoke with crime prevention expert David Kennedy about the Trump administration’s takeover of law enforcement in the nation’s capital.

I spoke with crime prevention expert David Kennedy about the Trump administration’s takeover of law enforcement in the nation’s capital, and the tactics that might prove more effective.

As students head back to school in Chicago, many will be exposed to gun violence. @thetrace.org's Gun Violence Data Hub collaborated with @wgntv.com to track the alarming number of shootings near schools wgntv.com/news/wgn-inv...

The Data Doesn’t Support Trump’s Justification for Deploying the National Guard Trump has taken over policing in D.C. and threatened to do the same in other cities. A Trace analysis shows that his claims of runaway violence are false.

Trump claimed the nation’s capital has been “taken over by violent gangs and bloodthirsty criminals.” But crime in D.C. and other cities he's targeted is not out of control — in fact, it’s decreasing. Below, we fact-check his claims.

This is the kind of story we can help your newsroom produce! Reach out via our help desk to get the ball rolling: datahub.thetrace.org/help-desk/