Maryland’s Department of Health unveiled a new data dashboard that tracks gun violence across the state. It’s part of what state officials say is a new tool designed to prevent gun violence.
A new preliminary state gun violence prevention plan was also announced.
The new dashboard breaks down incidents with guns including homicides, suicides and cases that result in nonfatal injuries. The dashboard also provides a way to view county by county, and even ZIP code by ZIP code, incidents.
Maryland Health Secretary Dr. Meena Seshamani told reporters, the data points are, “not just numbers — they’re real people.”
As a surgeon who’s worked in emergency rooms, Seshamani said, “I have personally seen how Maryland families and communities suffer from the impact of gun violence and its resulting trauma.”
According to the dashboard, there were 671 firearm-related deaths in Maryland in 2024. Of those, 55% were homicides, 44% were suicides. The data shows that there were also 780 emergency department visits tied to gun violence that year.
According to information on the dashboard, total firearm fatalities dropped by 24% from 2021 to 2024.
Jen Pauliukonis, the executive director of the Center for Firearm Violence Prevention and Intervention, said the new dashboard is not dependent on federal sources like the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“We work directly with the Vital Statistics Administration at the Maryland Department of Health, so we are not reliant on the federal CDC data with this stand-alone tool,” Pauliukonis said.
Officials couldn’t say precisely what’s behind that reduction, but said with added information, and the state’s new prevention plan, the answers will become clear and prevention efforts will be successful.
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