Trends in Vehicle Fatal and Non-Fatal Shooting Victimizations, 2020 – 2022, Indianapolis, Indiana.

Abstract

BACKGROUND Highways, streets, and parking lots appear to be the site of increasing numbers of gunshot victims found in or around vehicles. OBJECTIVE The focus of this brief is to examine trends in vehicle and roadway gun violence victimization between January 1, 2020, and May 31, 2022. KEY FINDINGS The IGVP documented 155 total victims who suffered a gunshot wound in a vehicle between January 1, 2020, and May 31, 2022. Of these, 68 of the victims were fatalities and 87 were non-fatal shooting victims. The IGVP found vehicle and roadway victimizations generally follow macro gun violence trends of increasing during warmer months. The IGVP consistently documented victims shot while parked in residential areas, at apartment complexes, and at gas stations. The IGVP also documented several instances of vehicles with multiple passengers engaging in gun violence producing incidents with several victims. The IGVP found road rage was not delineated as a motive or incident type for the vast majority of recorded victims both fatal and non-fatal (although in many cases a motive is not known). Due to onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, victims and incidents may be underreported at certain instances within the data collection timeframe.