ome males (U.S. Congress, 1993, p. 7). Although gun violence is most prevalent in urban areas, it is not uncommon in suburban and upper-income locales. For instance, gangs reportedly exist in towns with populations as small as 8,000.
Current estimates of the percentage of homicides that involve guns vary. However, the Center for Disease Control analyzed data collected from 1984 through 1987 and concluded that 80 percent of all homicides were firearms-related and that guns accounted for 96 percent of the increase in the homicide rate for African-American males (U.S. Congress, 1992, p. 70-71). Almost 70 percent of homicides reported to the FBI involved firearms and the rate of firearms-related deaths for 15- to 19-year-olds of all races increased by almost 150 percent between 1985 and 1990 (U.S. Congress, 1994b, p. 38). Each day, 13 children are either murdered, killed accidentally, or commit suicide using handguns (U.S. Congress, 1994b, p. 1).
The availability of guns is one of the factors cited in the increase in homicides by juveniles. Since 1980, the number
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