School gun violence incidents in the United States almost quadrupled in the 2021 to 2022 school year, with 59 people killed in that time.
A report released by nonpartisan group Everytown for Gun Safety revealed there were 193 gun violence incidents in school grounds between August 1, 2021 and May 31, 2022.
In the previous school year there were 62 incidents.
Before last year, the previous high was in 2018–19, with 75.
There have so far been 674 mass shootings in the US in 2022, according to the Gun Violence Archive, which tracks every shooting incident across the country.
Everytown has tracked every documented time a firearm was discharged inside or into a school building, or on school grounds, since its founding in 2013.
The report also found there were four "key facts" about school "shooting incidences":
- Those firing guns on school grounds often had a connection to the school, with 60 per cent of school-age shooters current or former students
- The guns were predominantly coming from home, family or friends, rather than purchased by the shooters themselves
- There were almost always warning signs, with 100 per cent of shooters showing concerning behaviours and at least one person aware of the plan ahead of time in 77 per cent of incidents
- Gun violence disproportionately impacted non-white students
Everytown's report recommended "school-based intervention", including crisis assessment programs, security upgrades and a trusting school climate.
It also called for secure firearm storage laws, raising the age to purchase semi-automatic firearms and requiring background checks "for all gun sales".
"These solutions form a thorough strategy by providing points of intervention at each level of a shooter's escalation to violence and by creating a system where people with dangerous histories cannot easily access guns," the report read.
"Our leaders must take responsible action to keep our schools safe; this report offers them a framework for doing so."
It also noted actions like arming teachers and school security officers and holding active shooter drills could harm and traumatise students.
The founder of gun violence advocacy group Moms Demand Action, Shannon Watts, said gun violence in schools "is preventable".
"We don't have to live like this, and our children and educators should never die like this," she said.
"The best way to prevent gun violence in schools is to prevent children from accessing firearms in the first place, and to implement comprehensive policies that identify and support students in crisis.
"We must demand common sense holistic, data-driven solutions that will protect our children and communities."
'The gun industry has flooded our neighbourhoods'
The report followed testimony by the chief executives of two US gun-makers to a US House of Representatives committee last month on mass shootings at a Texas school and a New York supermarket.
Sturm, Ruger & Co Inc and Daniel Defense Llc chief executives defended their business.
A report released by the committee showed that five major gun manufacturers have generated over US$1 billion in revenue from the sale of assault-style rifles in the past decade.
"The gun industry has flooded our neighbourhoods, our schools, even our churches and synagogues, and gotten rich doing it," committee chairwoman Carolyn Maloney, a Democrat, said in her opening statement.
A total 19 students and two teachers were killed and 17 others wounded at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas on May 24.
The 18-year-old shooter entered through an unlocked side door and barricaded himself inside a classroom for an hour before being killed.
A damning 80-page report released after the shooting found all levels of law enforcement "failed to prioritise saving innocent lives".
"At Robb Elementary, law enforcement responders failed to adhere to their active shooter training," the report said.
According to the report, the gunman fired approximately 142 rounds inside the building and it was "almost certain" that 100 shots came before any officer entered.
The commander of a Border Patrol tactical team waited for a bullet-proof shield and working master key for the classroom, which may have not even been needed, before entering the classroom.
No-one assumed command despite scores of officers, including Pete Arredondo, the Uvalde school district police chief, being on the scene.
ABC/AP/Reuters
