25 Dreadful Gang Violence Statistics for 2023

Since there’s not much information about gangs, apart from some broad guidelines, the facts and gang violence statistics presented here will surely help you understand more about them.

Having insight into some of the most dangerous parts of our society is always an exciting and intriguing topic.

The lives of those living in gangs are unique and offer an understanding of US history and culture, especially since they have been present in US society for more than 100 years.

Go through our list of facts to find out startling numbers about these groups and individuals.

General Gang Violence Statistics 2020

1. An average of 16.3 gang-related crimes per day were recorded in LA in the first half of 2019.

(Crosstown)

After rapper Nipsey Hussle’s murder in 2019, a truce between gangs in LA was being discussed. Yet, the crime connected to gangs rose to 16.3 per day in the first half of 2019 compared to the same period in the previous year, which was 15 per day. 

2. 2020 statistics on gang members and their use of social media shows that 71% of them actively use one or more social media.

(National Training & Technical Assistance Center)

Gangs are keeping up with the digital revolution going into 2022. 71% of all gang members admit to using social media. Furthermore, another 20% state they even operate a website or a social media page.

Apart from private purposes, they use social media for mobilizing and attracting vulnerable youths. Video posting, bragging, and celebrating the luxury life of a gang are just some methods, among others.

This way, gang violence finds its way in schools and increases the gang membership statistics among minors. 

3. 13% of all homicides in the US are attributed to gangs.

(Justice.Gov)

According to the latest death statistics on gang violence, 13% of all homicides are gang-related. This number goes as far as 40% in some neighboring countries, such as El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala, where some US gangs are located. 

4. Gang crimes comprise a whopping 48.9% of all violent crimes.

(NGC)

Gang violence in America statistics never stops surprising us. According to the latest reports, 48.9% of the violent crime was gang-related, 42.9% of property crime was of the same nature, and 39.9% of drug sales, too. 

New gangs and wars between the existing ones were the top factors influencing this high percentage.

5. Data shows that 41.6% of gangs come from large cities.

(NGC)

The ratio statistics assess how stats on gang violence are spread into specific areas and types.

Gangs with the largest membership, which make up 41.6% of the total number of gangs, are located in large cities. Suburban counties have close to 25.8%, and smaller towns 27.1% of the gang population. This leaves rural counties with only 5.5% of the national share of the gang population.

6. As stated in the latest data, around 2,000 homicides a year are gang-related.

(NATIONAL YOUTH GANG SURVEY ANALYSIS)

The FBI data shows that approximately 15,500 homicides annually across the US, around 2,000 are gang-related homicides, are reported to the National Youth Gang Center.

This revealing gang homicide statistics also show that 67% of the gang-related homicides happen in cities with more than 100,000 citizens, while 17% occur in suburban areas. 

7. A decade ago, nearly half of the human trafficking victims (49.1%) had some gang connection.

(National Training & Technical Assistance Center)

A Portland study found that 49.1% of human trafficking victims were connected to a gang one way or another. 96.4% of the victims were female.

As the US Attorney General stated, gangs learned that trafficking people was much cheaper and less risky than smuggling guns or drugs.

The public is less familiar with these crime stats related to gangs, which ought to be known better.

8. Only 5.7% of MS-13 gang members reported they joined for a chance to earn money.

(DoJ)

MS-13 seems to be different from other gangs. Namely, their primary goal is not an economic gain but a demonstration of power over the rival gangs through fear and violence. This fact is behind MS-13’s main drives, which produce gang violence and death statistics. 

A report issued from the Department of Justice finds that most of its members are, in fact, “relatively impoverished.”

9. One of the largest Latino gangs, MS-13, takes “protection money” that amounts to 10% to 40% of business earnings.

(MS13 DoJ)

The latest data shows that MS-13 collects “rent,” commonly known as “protection money,” from local businesses that amount to 10% to 40% of their earnings.

It is important for them to determine the right amount to enrich the gang and not cause a business to go bankrupt. This way, the violence statistics on the gang are low, and the profits high. 

FBI Statistics on Gangs

10. According to the latest FBI data, the number of street gang members is increasing in 49% of jurisdictions.

(FBI)

The FBI claims that 49% of the jurisdictions have an increase in street gang membership; the number of members stayed the same at 43% and decreased only in 8% of the jurisdictions. 

This is one of the most worrying trends in gang-related crime stats, implying that with the enlarged membership, their influence will spread too.

11. The latest FBI surveys show that 26% of the jurisdictions and 44% of the prisons reported that gang members joined extremist groups.

(FBI)

When answering an FBI survey, approximately 26% of the jurisdictions and 44% of the prisons reported that gang members under their supervision were joining extremist groups.

They interpreted it as a mutually beneficial relationship, where extremists use the gangs to spread their doctrine, while the gangs use the extremists to increase their power and possibly their membership.

12. In 2020, the FBI led 173 Violent Gang Safe Streets Task Forces (VGSSTFs).

(FY 2021 DoJ)

The FBI identified street gangs (both local and national) as a top threat to communities and, in 2020, led 173 Violent Gang Safe Streets Task Forces to reduce gang-related violence statistics. 

They also expect a rise in gang violence since urban gangs are expanding to suburban and rural areas where they go in conflict with the existing local ones. 

13. According to the latest data available, the FBI quoted 33,000 gangs and 1.4 million gang members active in the US.

(NGTA – FBI)

The simple gang statistics display some staggering results on the national level. Thus, the FBI released a report noting that there are 1.4 million gang members in more than 33,000 gangs in the US, including street gangs, prison gangs, and outlaw motorcycle gangs. 

Although the data comes from a decade-old report, it is still quite shocking.

14. The FBI dismantled 217 gangs/criminal enterprises in 2019.

(Annual Performance Report FY 2021)

In the 2019 report, the FBI states that they prioritize dismantling and prosecuting violent gangs, and in that year, they successfully destroyed 217 gangs or criminal enterprises. This helped reduce violent crime rates.

Gang Violence Facts

Criminal gangs can include organized crime groups from the Italian Mafia (Cosa Nostra), bike gangs, racist gangs, street gangs, and prison gangs. All of them have their specifications and ways of operating in the US.

15. The data from two decades ago shows that gang members in the US were 50% Hispanic or Latino, 32% African American, 10% white, and 8% others.

(Youth.gov)

According to this decades-long research, most gang members in the US were Hispanic/Latino—50% of all gang members belong to this ethnic group. Then come African Americans with 32%, whites with 10%, and other groups that make up the remaining 8%. 

So, one can expect that gang violence statistics by race would give different results, depending on where you are and what ethnic group gang is dominant there. 

16. Some of the largest gangs in the US include the Latin Kings, 18th Street, MS-13, Bloods, and Crips.

(Boston Herald)

Latin Kings are mainly based in Chicago, while 18th Street and MS-13 are transnational and have their members in the US and some neighboring countries. They are the top three largest Hispanic/Latino gangs in the US.

Black gang violence statistics are certainly higher in LA than anywhere else since the most well-known and oldest gangs, Bloods and Crips, are located there.

17. Classification of gangs shows that there are several gang types in the US.

(Carmichael, Ellis, & Brock PLLC)

Facts about gang violence in the US and its origin can be divided into four different categories: street gangs, organized crime groups, outlaw motorcycle gangs, and prison gangs. 

Crime statistics show that street gangs are involved in local drug trafficking and murder, trying to maintain control of their territories (Bloods, Crips, MS-13, etc.). 

Organized crime groups include different mobs (Italian, Russian, Irish Mafia, etc.) that operate in bigger money schemes and white-collar crime. 

Outlaw motorcycle gangs operate with drugs and weapons and are often involved in violence. (Hell’s Angels, Outlaws, Mongols, etc.)

Lastly, prison gangs operate inside prisons but often stretch out their activities far beyond the bars of their cells (Mexican Mafia, Aryan Brotherhood, Black Guerrilla Family, etc.).

Statistics on Prevention of Gang Violence

18. The 2019 report of the Project Safe Neighborhoods says that the states have 187 target areas in the US designed to cooperate with the local authorities.

(Project Safe Neighborhoods)

From the 2019 report by the organization, Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), we can see 187 target areas across the country in 93 districts. They also state that 41% of the districts have multiple PSN areas.

Additionally, since the reinvigoration of the PSN a couple of years ago, they have aimed to influence and reduce gang statistics by state with successful cooperation with local and federal law enforcement agencies and the prosecutors.

19. The latest data shows that fatal and non-fatal shootings have dropped by 20% in the PSN Detroit area.

(Project Safe Neighborhoods)

The Detroit PSN target area reduced its shootings by 20%, cooperating with the local authorities. Also, violent crime dropped 20.5% in Gary, Indiana. Similar results were seen in Richmond, Virginia, where violent crime was cut by 22%. Other cities that had their crime rates reduced were Lexington, Kentucky, and the City of Jackson, Mississippi. 

The gang violence statistics by cities that PGN has brought forward provide valuable information about the success in crime prevention through cooperation between citizen initiatives and local authorities. 

20. The Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) allotted $18,177,172 to Project Safe Neighborhoods for 2020.

(The Bureau of Justice Assistance)

The Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) provided $18,177,172 to Project Safe Neighborhoods in 2020. The districts with the highest amounts were California Central – $918,919, Florida Middle – $548,894, Texas Southern – $523,818, New York Eastern – $489,465, and Illinois Northern – $465,668. 

Looking at these figures, we can assume that these are the areas where gang crime statistics reach their highest peaks.

21. The Bureau of Justice Assistance provided over $17.5 million to Project Safe Neighborhoods in 2021.

(United States DoJ)

The funding’s goal is to support addressing violent crimes threatening the country. Namely, the Western District of North Carolina Fiscal Agent received a $181,000 PSN grant. 

In addition, over $3,700,000 in federal grants were awarded to local law enforcement agencies, Tribal government programs, and non–profit organizations in the Western District.

22. The media strategy was the choice of 76% of Project Safe Neighborhoods target areas to prevent violence in the streets.

(Project Safe Neighborhoods)

While 76% of PSN target areas used media strategy to reduce violent crimes, 73% used community meetings; 71% had police-community trust-building initiatives, while 68% established partnerships with the local prevention and reentry programs. 

None of these exclude each other, and some of the implemented tactics complemented each other in the same target areas.

Youth Gang Statistics 2020

23. The average amount of time the youth remain in a gang is one to two years.

(National Gang Center)

For the majority of youth, joining a gang is not a decision of a lifetime. It is a common misconception that it is impossible to leave a gang. 

One in ten gang members reported involvement in a gang for more than four years.

24. The latest data points out the fact that the prevalence of youth in gangs is around 2%.

(Research Gate)

Researchers estimate that 2% of gang members are juveniles, but they admit that the statistics on how many join and leave gangs are hard to collect. Nevertheless, according to their estimates, around 401,000 young people join gangs in the US, and another 378,000 leave gangs every year.

What is grimmest in youth gang violence statistics is that violence is among the dominant causes of death among youth in the US.

25. 8% of all youth in the US have joined a gang by their twenties.

(National Gang Center) 

The National Gang Center found that 8% of all youth in the US have joined a gang at least once by their twenties. This statistic goes up when urban areas are in question because they have 15% of youth joining a gang at some point during their adolescent and young adult life. 

Gang violence statistics aren’t necessarily increased due to the above fact since many people leave the gangs after some time.

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