1,012
gun deaths in South Carolina, including
95
children and teens
(ages 0-19)
45%
Homicides comprised more than two in every five gun deaths
53%
Suicides comprised more than half of all gun deaths
84%
of gun death victims were male
8th
highest gun death rate in the country in 2019

GUN DEATHS BY INTENT, 2019

Over 1,000 South Carolinians died by gun violence in 2019, an average of nearly three people every day. Suicides were 53% of the gun deaths and homicides were 45%.

Number of deaths

County Variations

Age-adjusted gun death rate per 100,000

  • 12.99 to 17.59
  • 17.60 to 22.20
  • 22.21 to 26.81
  • 26.82 to 31.22
  • Suppressed /
    Unreliable

Among the counties in South Carolina, Colleton County had the highest gun death rate, followed by Jasper County and Barnwell County.

Conversely, York County had the lowest gun death rate, followed by Beaufort County and Edgefield County.

FIREARM HOMICIDES

453
firearm homicides in 2019, including
59
children and teens
5th
highest firearm homicide rate in the U.S.

Gun Deaths by Intent

More than 2/5 of gun deaths were homicides in 2019.

Homicide by Method

More than 4/5 of homicides were committed with firearms in 2019.

FIREARM SUICIDES

532
firearm suicides in 2019, including
29
children and teens
21st
highest firearm suicide rate in the U.S.

Gun Deaths by Intent

More than half of all gun deaths were suicides in 2019.

Suicide by Method

More than 3/5 of suicides were by firearm in 2019.

Resources

Additional Information

Notes

  • All rates listed are age-adjusted in order to allow for accurate comparisons between populations with different age distributions.
  • All data is from 2019, the most recent year of data available, unless otherwise indicated.
  • Source: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. WONDER Online Database, 1999-2019. Available: http://wonder.cdc.gov/ucd-icd10.html.

Last updated March 2021