Gun Violence 2023: US Sets Record Pace of One Mass Killing Per Week on Average

In 2023, 17 mass shootings killed 88 people in 111 days in the US, a record pace.
Vice President Kamala Harris blasted the Republican-controlled Congress for failing to adopt gun safety regulations.
The Washington State Legislature banned over 50 semi-automatic rifles, including the AR-15 and AK-47, used in mass killings.

US mass killings are now occurring around once every week this year, establishing a record rate for the nation in 2023.

Over 111 days, the bloodshed claimed 88 lives in 17 mass murders. The murderers always used weapons. Only 2009 saw more of these tragic events in the same time frame.

On a routine Monday, shooting deaths occurred at a Nashville elementary school. Northern California farmworkers were shot over a workplace vendetta. Dancers were murdered while celebrating the Lunar New Year at a dance hall outside of Los Angeles.

In the last week alone, shots poured down on a Sweet 16 celebration in Dadeville, Alabama, killing four partygoers and injuring 32 more. And in Bowdoin, Maine, a recently released prisoner shot and killed four people, including his parents, before turning the gun on drivers on a major freeway, according to ABC News.

The average number of mass murders in the US this year is one every 6.53 days, according to an analysis of data from The AP/USA Today.

There are a variety of reasons why there is violence from coast to coast. Domestic abuse, gang retribution, murder-suicides, school shootings, and workplace vendettas are all examples of violence. Since January 1, every single one of them has killed four or more individuals at once.

VP Kamala Harris Slams Republican-Controlled Congress

Despite the fact that the US Congress has yet to pass a ban on firearms, President Joe Biden and other Democrats have shown a growing willingness to push for more stringent gun laws amid increasing incidents of US mass shootings, even when it may not result in immediate political gains.

During an interview on "The Jennifer Hudson Show" on Thursday, US Vice President Kamala Harris lambasted Congress for failing to pass gun safety laws in response to an increasing number of mass shootings, accusing them of not having the fortitude to stand up to the National Rifle Association (NRA) and the gun lobby.

Kamala Harris voiced her concern about the inability of Congress to uphold the Second Amendment and put sensible gun safety measures into effect, according to The Hill.

During the interview, Vice President Kamala Harris underscored that the Second Amendment and legislation governing gun safety are not in conflict, saying that the US government "should not have to be presented with this false choice, which suggests you're either in favor of the Second Amendment or you want reasonable gun safety laws."

Washington Implements Semi-Automatic Rifle Ban

Meanwhile, the Washington State Legislature passed a bill on Wednesday banning a large number of semi-automatic guns, and the governor is anticipated to sign it into law. The terrible US mass shootings that have occurred in our country most often involve young males using powerful rifles that were formerly outlawed statewide.

The ban would apply to more than 50 different types of firearms, such as the AR-15, AK-47, and other rifles of a similar design that shoot one round with each trigger stroke and then reload themselves for the next shot, PBS reported.

Though certain exceptions are made for sales to the military and law enforcement in Washington, the measure outlaws their future manufacturing, distribution, and importation.