There were at least forty-eight active shooter incidents in 2023, according to a report from the FBI released on Monday.
The report aims to “offer an overview of active shooter incidents to assist law enforcement, other first responders, and the public in better understanding the threat levels associated with such events,” according to the FBI.
While active shooter incidents decreased 4% on the year, there has been a 60% increase since 2019.
Each incident included a male shooter, with the exception of the Nashville Covenant Presbyterian School where the shooter was female, though identified as a transgender woman.
Shooter ages ranged from seventeen to seventy-two years old.
The FBI identified five categories where incidents occur, including open space, commerce, health care, education and residence.
Twenty eight incidents occurred in open space settings, fourteen in commerce, three in education, two in health care and one in residence.
California had the highest number of incidents, eight for a total of forty-seven casualties.
The Lewiston, Maine incident was the deadliest shooting on the year, with eighteen killed and thirteen wounded, the highest casualty rate for a single-location incident.
Firearms used included 43 handguns, 16 rifles and 1 shotgun.
Incidents occurred every day of the week, the most occurring on Monday.
Seven of the shooters committed suicide, thirty were apprehended by law enforcement and twelve were killed.
Also, 24 shootings took place at multiple locations and 24 took place at a single location.
In February of 2023, a shooting occurred at Michigan State University, with the shooter managing to evade police for over two and a half hours. The shooter maneuvered through student halls and East Lansing streets before committing suicide.
“The FBI designated 229 active shooter incidents from 2019–2023. This represents an 89% increase in active shooter incidents (121) from the previous five-year period (2014–2018),” according to the report.
