At least 14 people were shot on Saturday during a child’s birthday party at a banquet hall in Stockton, California. Police said the shooter is still out there, and early signs point to this being a targeted attack.
San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office posted on X: “We’re investigating a shooting in the 1900 block of Lucile Avenue in Stockton. Several victims were taken to local hospitals.”
Gun violence in the US
Gun violence in the U.S. keeps being a massive problem. It’s not just the sheer number of shootings; it’s the complicated mix of social, economic, legal, and cultural issues that keep it going.
For starters, guns are everywhere. The U.S. has one of the highest rates of gun ownership in the world, and a lot of states have pretty loose laws about buying them.
In many places, you don’t need much more than an ID to walk out with a gun. That easy access means arguments or grudges can turn deadly fast.
Then you’ve got inequality, economic stress, and social pressure. Poverty, joblessness, and lack of opportunity push some people toward violence. In neighborhoods where people feel ignored or let down where the police aren’t trusted and there’s little support tensions just get worse.
Culturally, guns are baked into American life, especially in certain communities. For some, owning a gun is about identity, or feeling powerful, or even just keeping up with neighbours. If you throw in old wounds and mistrust of authorities, you end up with people solving problems with violence instead of words.
On top of that, prevention efforts are all over the place. Some states invest in mental health and conflict resolution, but others don’t. Congress stays stuck, so nothing really changes nationwide. Even after a mass shooting makes headlines, lawmakers mostly stick to their old positions.
The media plays a role, too. When a mass shooting happens, at a school, a mall, wherever, it gets nonstop coverage. Researchers say this can inspire copycats.
Meanwhile, everyday shootings like domestic violence, gang conflicts, or accidents get less attention, but they’re responsible for most gun deaths.
Another problem: the numbers themselves. There’s no agreement on what counts as a “mass shooting.” Some groups count any incident with four or more people shot, others only count if there are four deaths. This messes up the data and makes debate confusing.
How many mass shootings have there been in 2025?
Looking at 2025, the Gun Violence Archive reports between 330 and 375 mass shootings across the U.S. so far using the standard of four or more people shot, not including the shooter. By October, one source counted 337 mass shootings. Another listed about 374 incidents, with 366 people killed and more than 1,600 wounded.
Even though the numbers are high, 2025 actually saw some declines compared to recent years. Midway through the year, mass shootings and total deaths were among the lowest since before the pandemic.
Still, experts point out that mass shootings despite all the headlines are just a small slice of the problem, maybe 2.8% of all gun deaths in 2025. Most deaths come from daily violence: murders, domestic disputes, gang shootings, suicides, and accidents.
So what does all this mean? Basically, gun violence in the U.S. runs deep. Even if mass shootings go down for a bit, the root causes easy access to guns, lack of mental health care, poverty, shaky communities, and a culture that sometimes celebrates violence—don’t really change.
Unless the country tackles all these issues at once gun laws, mental health, inequality, community support, and the way people handle conflict nothing’s going to get better.
The 2025 numbers make that clear: hundreds of mass shootings, thousands hurt or killed, and lives upended everywhere.
Bottom line: gun violence in America isn’t just about the big, shocking events on the news. It’s a problem woven into laws, society, money, and culture. Fixing it means facing all of that, not just the headlines.
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