Mass shooting deaths in U.S. hit record in 2023: More than 200 people killed in 40 mass murders – “People are just getting numb to it”

By Safia Samee Ali
25 December 2023

(The Messenger) – The pace of mass murder shootings continued to accelerate in the U.S. in 2023, hitting a new record for both the number of attacks and the number of people killed.

The year ended with a grim toll of 40 mass murder shootings — which left 207 people dead, according to data collected by the nonpartisan Gun Violence Archive.

The organization defines a mass murder as any incident where four or more victims are killed, not including the shooter.

The Gun Violence Archive defines “mass shootings” as four or more victims being shot — either killed or wounded.

At least a quarter of the mass murders committed with guns this year happened in public places. But the public is becoming desensitized to the news of attacks on the places where Americans work, relax, shop and go to school, said Mark Bryant, executive director of the Gun Violence Archive.

“People are just getting numb to it.”

“A drumbeat that just keeps going and going”

Unless it’s a large-scale shooting like Uvalde — where 19 elementary students and two teachers were murdered in 2022 — most of the media moves on very quickly, he said. 

“It’s like a drumbeat that just keeps going and going,” said Kelly Drane, research director for the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence. 

“We see these shootings and we see the same cycle played out where you have these tragedies and there’s no legislation passed so the story kind of feels the same to people.”

“We are just hovering around these highs and we haven’t really seen dramatic decreases in these numbers because every single one of these shootings, every one of these deaths, that’s a family member, a brother, a mother, a sister, a friend or colleague, these are all people,” she said. 

January saw the highest number of mass murder shooting deaths, with 43 people killed. Among them were the 11 victims of the Monterey Park shooting in California, where the gunman targeted a Lunar New Year festival dance. 

In March, a former student of The Covenant School, a Christian elementary school in Nashville, opened fire while classes were in session killing three nine‑year‑olds and three adults. 

A May mass shooting at the Allen Premium Outlet mall outside Dallas took the lives of eight  people, the youngest of whom was three-years-old, while seven others were injured.

The Oct. 25 mass shooting at a bowling alley and bar in Lewiston, Maine, was the deadliest of the year, with 18 people killed. A massive manhunt for the gunman ended days later with him being found dead from apparent suicide.

Part of what may be contributing to that numbness is the lack of movement on gun control laws — which are supported by a majority of the population — or other measures to keep guns out of the hands of dangerous people, Bryant said. 

“When you see intransigence in one half of our government whether you’re talking at the federal state or local level, you’re seeing this intransigence that just does not abate that is incredibly frustrating,” he said.

More guns and more deaths

While the figures are stark, many experts say a spike in gun ownership and the relaxation of gun laws in many states  are contributing to the rise in mass murders. 

The National Rifle Association and other gun-rights advocates blame less appetite to prosecute criminals, and more lax bail policies that put more offenders back on the street while they await trial.

Gun ownership skyrocketed during and post pandemic and when people have access to firearms, it makes it easier to use those weapons in times of stress and crisis in ways that – without access to a firearm – they might respond very differently, Drane said. 

Gun manufacturing reached record high numbers in 2021 with the United States putting out 13 million guns, according to federal data from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. In 2018, gunmakers produced a little over 9 million guns, data showed.

“There’s more access to guns and people are experiencing these stressors and maybe a person experiencing those stressors that didn’t have a gun might express their anger in a very different way than going into their workplace and shooting their colleagues or to go into a dance hall and shoot people,” Drane said. 

Additionally, AR-style semi-automatic rifles — which are among the most popular firearms in America — make mass shootings deadlier, because they shoot high-velocity rifle rounds that do tremendous damage to victims, and most carry magazines of 30 rounds or more.

“These assault rifles tear people apart rather than just shoot them,” Bryant said. [more]

Mass shooting deaths hit record in 2023: More than 200 people killed in 40 mass murders