A tragic incident in Lewiston, Maine, has added to the staggering toll of mass killings in the United States since 2006, with nearly 3,000 lives lost.
On a fateful Wednesday, a mass shooting erupted at a bowling alley and a nearby restaurant in Lewiston, Maine. The horrifying outcome left at least 18 individuals dead and 13 others wounded. This event takes its place among the 37 mass killings recorded in the U.S. thus far in 2023, marking it as the deadliest occurrence this year. These data points are meticulously tracked by the collaborative efforts of USA Today, The Associated Press, and Northeastern University, with their project defining mass killings as "the intentional killing of four or more victims within a 24-hour period, excluding the deaths of unborn children and the offender(s)."
The recent shootings, combined with a separate incident in which five people were found shot to death in a residence in Sampson County, North Carolina, have pushed the total count of victims killed in mass killings to 195 this year. In 2023, California and Texas have been the hardest-hit states, with each witnessing four mass killings, resulting in 28 and 21 victims, respectively. Additionally, Alabama, Florida, and Tennessee have each experienced three mass killings, resulting in at least 12 victims in each of these states.
Furthermore, six more states, including Maine and North Carolina, have reported two mass-killing incidents in 2023, while eight states have had a single incident.
When examining data since 2006, it becomes evident that nearly 3,000 victims have fallen prey to mass killings in the U.S., with around 2,000 more individuals sustaining injuries. Over this period, California leads with 61 incidents, followed by Texas with 48. The analysis accompanying the USA Today/AP database underscores a noteworthy trend: while homicides involving fewer than four victims tend to occur more frequently in larger cities, mass killings with higher death tolls often transpire in smaller towns or rural settings.
The data also sheds light on the demographics of mass-killing perpetrators. Out of 680 offenders with known genders in the USA Today/AP database, 93% were male, while 7% were female. In terms of age, perpetrators were most frequently in the 25 to 29 age range, with an average age of around 32. Startlingly, in 4% of mass-killing incidents, the offender was a minor, with the youngest being only 9 years old. This grim reality underscores the pressing need for greater awareness and action to address the issue of mass killings in the United States.