Minnesota Sees Rise in ‘Gun Deaths,’ Mostly From Suicides

The taking of one’s own life is something that I’d like to say I can’t understand. Unfortunately, I’ve been in dark enough places in my life where that sounded like a fine way to address the problems. But, as they say, it’s a permanent solution to a temporary problem. I’m still here, and life is much better than it was. I’m glad I’m here.

Yet I’m not one to just throw shade at those who made a different decision. I sincerely wish they hadn’t, but I don’t know what was going on in their head.

What bothers me is when people try to lump these things in with homicides, which they only seem to do with firearms, such as this report out of Minnesota.

Minnesota recorded 564 gun-related deaths in 2024, a 6% increase over the previous year, according to a new study from Protect Minnesota , a gun violence prevention nonprofit.

Of the 564 deaths, 26% were homicides, while 72% of them were suicides — 60% of those suicides occurring in Greater Minnesota, according to Department of Health data compiled in the study, released Tuesday, July 29.

Maggiy Emery, executive director of Protect Minnesota, said the disparity of suicides by firearm in Greater Minnesota isn’t unique to 2024 and is a result of several factors.

“This is a trend that we’ve seen for the past several years,” she said, citing factors such as isolation, higher rates of poverty, and access to mental health care.

The increase in overall deaths by firearm in Minnesota contrasts with a national trend . The most recent national gun violence death data shows a decrease from roughly 48,000 deaths in 2022 to roughly 47,000 in 2023.

Minnesota’s 72% of firearm deaths from suicide also contrasts with the national rate, which stands at 58% , according to Pew Research Center.

It should be noted, though, that Protect Minnesota is, in fact, a gun control group and not just a gun violence prevention outfit, though the media tries to pretend they’re one in the same.

The report also goes on to note that this increase comes amid the first year of Minnesota’s red flag law’s existence, which has long been sold to people in part as a way to prevent suicides.

But the problem is that suicide, even those involving a firearm, isn’t a gun issue. Red flag laws treat them as if they are. Groups like Protect Minnesota do, too, and they’re not.

I will give Emery credit for acknowledging things like mental health care, poverty, and isolation as playing major factors. That’s quite an admission from a gun control advocate. Especially since Minnesota has embraced gun control more than many other states and are seeing an increase in something that people expected to see go down after the red flag law passed.

It’s evidence that the law didn’t work as claimed.

Not that anyone will admit to that, though. 

Mental health is a real issue, and we need to address it, but the anti-gun effort to stigmatize it–including people making a thing about the Manhattan shooter’s past mental health struggles that aren’t dissimilar to millions of others who have never shot anyone–only makes the problem worse in the long run. People won’t seek help if it might mean they could lose their guns. Many won’t even look at mental health treatment if it could risk their gun rights, as our own John Petrolino pointed out earlier this week.

Suicide isn’t a gun issue. It’s a mental health issue. It’s well past time that these people actually act like it.

Editor’s Note: We take suicide prevention seriously here at Bearing Arms, and we know that we can save lives without infringing on our Second Amendment rights. 

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