Suicides & Firearms in St. Petersburg, Pinellas Co. & State of FL

Facts You Should Know:

Nationwide, suicides account for over 60% of firearm-related deaths.
Suicide is often an impulsive act and guns are a devastatingly effective means of ending one’s life.
Firearms are used in approximately half of all suicides. Between 2015-17 there were 591 suicides in Pinellas County with 52% involving the use of a firearm. Between Jan 1 2013 and June 30 2018, there were 137 suicides involving a firearm in St. Petersburg.

SUICIDE DATA:
Suicides in Pinellas County
5 years between 2012-2016          982 suicide deaths, an average of 196/year
2014                                       195 (17.3 suicides per 100,000 population)
2015                                       199 (18 suicides per 100,000 population)
2016                                       214 (19.6 suicides per 100,000 population)
2017                                       178 (16.9 suicides per 100,000 population)
Summary: Suicides trended upward in the county between 2012-2016 dropping significantly in 2017.
Suicides in Florida
2014               3035 (13.8 suicides per 100,000 population)
2015               3152 (14.5 suicides per 100,000 population)
2016               3122 (14.1 suicides per 100,000 population)
2017               3187 (14.1 suicides per 100,000 population)
Summary: The national age-adjusted suicide rate was 13.5 per 100,000 population
in 2016; in Florida it was 14 per 100,000; in Pinellas County it was 19.6 per 100,000.
Suicide was the 10thleading cause of death in Florida, placing Florida 21st in the nation.

FIREARM DEATH DATA:
Firearm Deaths in Florida
2014               2410
2015               2559
2016               2704
Summary: The firearm death rate in Florida in 2016 was 12.6 per 100,000, higher than the nation’s 11.8 per 100,000 rate.

SUICIDE BY FIREARM DATA:
Suicides by Firearm in St. Petersburg
During the 5.5 years from Jan. 1, 2013 – June 30, 2018, there were 137 suicides by firearms.

Suicides by Firearm in Pinellas County
2015-17 total suicides (see annual data above) 591
2015-17 suicides by firearm                                               307
Summary: 52% of suicides during this 3-year period involved a firearm; this
equates to 8.4 per 100,000 population. (data from www.flhealthcharts.com
under profile of fatal injuries)

Suicides by Firearm in Florida (all data is per 100,000 population)
Year   Rate of firearm death     Rate of suicides % of suicides using firearms
2012 8.01                                        15.52 51.61%
2013 8.0                                           14.95                                        53.51%
2014 7.73                                        15.26 50.66%
2015 8.05                                        15.83                                        50.85%
2016   8.1 14.1 57%
Summary: 53% of suicides during this 5-year period involved a firearm.

Sources:

Centers for Disease Control “Fatal Injury Data”
https://www.cdc.gov/injury/wisqars/fatal.html
Centers for Disease Control “Suicide Mortality by State”
https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/pressroom/sosmap/suicide-mortality/suicide.htm
Centers for Disease Control searchable database for “underlying cause of death” https://wonder.cdc.gov/controller/datarequest/D76;jsessionid=702709C6F4D24E3EBE05475813D1161A
Florida Health Charts, Suicide Deaths, Pinellas County
http://www.flhealthcharts.com/charts/DataViewer/DeathViewer/DeathViewer.aspx?indNumber=0116
Florida Health Charts, Suicide Deaths Pinellas County / 3 yr rolling rates, age-adj.http://www.flhealthcharts.com/charts/DataViewer/DeathViewer/DeathViewer.aspx?indNumber=0116
St. Petersburg Police Department data on suicides by firearms obtained August 2018
Study by Governing magazine using data from the National Center for Health Statistics:
http://www.governing.com/gov-data/health/county-suicide-death-rates-map.html