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Date:  October 23, 1995
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contacts:  Mary Ann Fenley (515) 242-2540,
           Carrie Hartshorne (770) 488-4902.
           NCHS Press Office (301) 436-7551

National Data Show Drop in Homicide
and Increase in Youth Suicide

Des Moines, Iowa--The number of homicides in the United States dropped significantly in 1994, according to provisional data released today at the National Violence Prevention Conference co- sponsored by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the University of Iowa Injury Prevention Research Center in Des Moines, Iowa. While the homicide rates continue to decline, youth suicide rates are increasing.

New data from the CDC show that there were 23,730 homicides in 1994, down from 25,470 in 1993. With the decline, homicide falls from being the tenth leading cause of death in the U.S. to the eleventh.

"Reducing violence in this country is a top priority, so this is encouraging news," said Vice President Al Gore who delivered the keynote address opening the conference. "But this is only the beginning, because 23,000 homicides a year are still far too many. And homicide is still the second leading killer for young Americans, ages 15-24, and the third for young children, ages 5-14."

The report shows death rates from homicide fell by 8 percent, from 10.5 deaths per 100,000 in 1993 to 9.7 in 1994, continuing the downward trend that started in 1992. From 1987 through 1991, the homicide rate had risen at an average of five percent a year.

For youth homicides, among young men ages 15-24, the news is not as promising. The rates for homicide in this group have not come down, although they have leveled off. The rate of firearm homicide among 15- to 24-year old males is over three times that of the overall homicide rate (33 per 100,000 population in contrast to 9.1 per 100,000 population). Firearm homicides among males ages 15- 24 account for nearly 90 percent of the total homicides in this age group.

In contrast to homicide, suicide rates in the United States are not declining. The number of suicides in 1994 was 32,410, up from 31,230 in 1993. As with homicide, suicide is a major concern for young men ages 15-24. Since the mid-1950s, suicide rates have more than tripled among males in this age group, and this increase shows no sign of slowing up. Suicide rates among young men ages 15-24 remain twice as high as the overall suicide rate in the United States. Although suicide rates for blacks are lower than for whites, the rate for black males ages 15-19 increased 165 percent from 1980 to 1992.

In commenting on the drop in homicide rates, HHS Secretary Donna E. Shalala said, "These findings are encouraging signs that violence can be preventable. We have made progress in preventing homicides. Now we need to do the same thing for family and intimate violence, suicide, and violence in the workplace."

Sen Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), who obtained funding for the Des Moines conference, said: "A stunning simultaneous breakdown of community, family and work has created a vacuum which has been filled by violence, drugs and gangs. Prevention is the key and it is fitting that the CDC is sponsoring this conference. Violence is very much like a disease -- it can be studied, understood and prevented."

About 1000 representatives from public and private organizations across the country have come together in Des Moines to find solutions for violence prevention. Participants at the conference represent health, law enforcement, education, social services, academic institutions, federal and state governments, and community-based organizations. The conference will run from Monday morning, October 23 and end with an address by Attorney General Janet Reno Wednesday morning.

"Society has not adequately protected our young people from two violent ends to young lives: homicide and suicide," said Dr. David Satcher, Director of the CDC. "While it's encouraging to see the overall homicide rate come down, it's distressing to see so many of our young people dying from violence that is either self-inflicted or inflicted by another. We have got to find more effective ways to prevent this."

For more information on the data or copies of the "Annual Summary of Births, Marriages, Divorces and Deaths: United States, 1994" contact the National Center for Health Statistics press office at (301) 436-7551. Also released today was "Suicide in the United States: 1980-1992," from the National Center for Injury Prevention and Control.

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