Gun-related homicides are on the rise in San Francisco
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San Francisco's rate of firearm-related homicides has almost doubled since 2015, according to an analysis by the left-leaning Center for American Progress Action Fund provided exclusively to Axios.
By the numbers: There were a recorded 2.8 firearm-related homicides per 100,000 people in 2015. That figure jumped to over 5 in 2017 but generally stayed below 4 until 2020; since then, it's ticked up steadily to 4.7 in 2021 and 4.9 in 2022.
- That trend is expected to continue — San Francisco's police chief reported in April that gun violence in the city was already up 6% compared to last year.
Of note: California has recorded an increase in mass shootings in recent years.
- Two occurred in San Francisco within the same weekend earlier this year.
Zoom out: The cities with the highest firearm homicide rates are still clustered in the South, generally in red states with less restrictive gun laws, the analysis shows.
- The report, which used data from the Gun Violence Archive on the 300 most populous U.S. cities, concludes there's a distinct gap between urban firearm homicide rates in blue states — which tend to have stronger gun safety laws — and those in red states.
- Yes, but: Gun homicide rates were higher overall in blue cities — as defined by the mayor's party affiliation — than in red ones.
The big picture: There's a growing push to treat gun violence as a public health crisis, including New Mexico's controversial use of a public health order to ban open and concealed carry.