A recent study by UCLA researchers of in-home murders of children twelve and under revealed that according to the National Violent Death Reporting System and other agencies, nearly one quarter of these homicides occurred in the children’s homes. Even more shocking, children under the age of twelve accounted for approximately two-thirds of homicides occurring in their own homes. However, babies are the most vulnerable. They shoulder the highest risk of maltreatment. In 2022 over twenty-five percent of victims were under the age of two.
Study results were published in the September 28, 2025 issue of JAMA Surgery. Additional statistics indicate that rates of in-home firearm homicide have doubled in young children and adolescents since 2010. The team found that these rates were often linked to intimate partner violence and abuse of children with parents being the most common abusers.
According to Dr. Jorden Rook, lead author, pediatric homicides in the home remain understudied due to the public’s interest being drawn towards mass murders. However, the researchers continued their analysis of factors associated with the murder of these children.
The team suggested that red flag laws, also known as Extreme Risk Protection orders and the firearm laws that link firearms with relinquishment may have the potential to protect children.
Safe Storage
The study indicates that traditional firearm prevention methods of safe storage, such as locking guns in closets may no longer be adequate for preventing child homicides. Completely removing the firearms from high-risk households is a better method of prevention.
Dr. Rook, a resident in General Surgery at UCLA’s David Geffen School of Medicine indicated that prevention will definitely be the focus of future studies. UCLA research suggests that from 2020 through 2021 almost one-quarter of young victims of firearm homicide were killed in their own homes. This includes almost two-thirds of child victims aged twelve years or younger.
The findings also found that rates of in-home firearm homicide have more than doubled among children and adolescents since 2010. The team found that these cases were often linked with intimate partner violence and child abuse. Parents were most often found guilty of the homicides. This data suggests that Extreme Risk Protection Orders, domestic violence-related relinquishment firearm laws, and potential policies linking child abuse investigations with firearm relinquishment, may be potential tools to protect children.
Dr. Rook said further that while mass shootings and community gun violence involving child and adolescent victims attract the most attention, pediatric firearm homicides in the home remain understudied. This is unfortunately the case despite being a major cause of child and adolescent deaths. The researchers sought to fill that gap by looking at the factors associated with these deaths.
According to Dr. Rook, research shows that traditional home-based firearm injury prevention like safe storage such as locking guns away, may not be enough to prevent many of these tragic cases. Instead, policies that address risk factors for in-home homicide like intimate partner violence and child abuse, and which remove firearms from high-risk households, may be effective prevention strategies. Dr. Rook emphasized that this will be the focus of future research.
The researchers examined data of nearly 2,200 firearm-related homicides involving children and adolescents aged 17 and younger from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS) Restricted Access Database. For their primary analysis, they examined results from 48 U.S. states between 2020 and 2021.
Total Homicides:
Children Aged 12 or younger:
- 1,660 (76%) occurred away from home, and 536 (24%) occurred at home
In-home homicides:
- 20% related to in-home-childhood abuse
- 17% were related to intimate partner violence
The researchers referenced some study limitations. There was some missing data in the NVDRS such as details on the 2021 data may have been misclassified.
Pediatric homicides
In circumstances surrounding some homicides, the 2020-2021 data coincided with the COVID-19 pandemic, a limitation that the researchers addressed by assessing the regional trends reflected in the 14 states’ data; and some incidents that may have been misclassified due to the NVDRS data’s reliance on medical, coroner and police records.
The study was conducted with the American Pediatric Surgical Association and the American Academy of Pediatrics Advocacy Committee.
