An international comparison of 'youth' (15–24) and 'adult' (25–34) homicide 1974–94: Highlighting the US anomaly

Youth murder in the USA has given further impetus to the 'gun debate' in American culture. It is argued that if the extent of violent deaths in the USA, compared with the rest of the developed world, was more widely understood, this would improve the likelihood of change. A USA/international comparison of 'youth & adult' (15-34) homicide was undertaken to demonstrate the anomaly of the US homicide situation compared with other major Western countries. All data are extrapolated from the latest WHO mortality rates. Ratios of ratios are calculated from annual US rates since 1974 to demonstrate the changing pattern of 'youth' (15-24) and 'adult' (25-34) homicide with the General Population Rate (GPR) (1974-94). The five-year average homicide rates are analysed in the 10 major countries, by gender and age, to illustrate the different patterns of homicide. The latest numbers of US homicides over 7.75 years, a matching period being the Vietnam War, are compared against the daily average US fatalities during the ...