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New Orleans, Louisiana — Today, the Violence Prevention Institute at Tulane University, in partnership with the Vera Institute of Justice and Washington University in St. Louis, published the New Orleans Firearm Violence Dashboard making critical data accessible to agencies, organizations, and people working to address firearm violence.

Gun violence is a public health issue that causes significant harm to people, their families, and communities. This tool provides information about the characteristics of people and neighborhoods affected by firearm violence in New Orleans from 2019 to 2024. It combines data from the New Orleans Police Department with victim information from the Louisiana Department of Health and Orleans Parish Coroner’s Office. By linking these sources together, policymakers and violence prevention leaders can get a more complete and accurate picture of firearm violence in New Orleans, evidence that will help guide future violence prevention and intervention efforts.

Key findings:

• From 2019–2024 in New Orleans, firearm homicide deaths peaked in 2022 and were lowest in 2024.
• Firearm homicides are not equally distributed across neighborhoods in New Orleans. Across the 71 neighborhoods included in the map, there were seven neighborhoods where there were no firearm homicides during the study period; while there were also 10 neighborhoods where there were more than 30 firearm homicides over the study period.
• In line with research from other cities, this analysis found that the rate of firearm homicides was generally lower in neighborhoods with high rates of home ownership, college graduation, and labor force participation.
• While media coverage of firearm violence often focuses on young people, Black men ages 25–44 consistently bear a disproportionate burden of firearm homicide deaths in New Orleans.

“No single data source gives us the full picture of firearm violence in a community—each has gaps, biases, and missing incidents that can lead us to undercount the true burden or potentially misidentify who is most affected,” said Dr. Julia Fleckman, faculty affiliate at the Tulane University Violence Prevention Institute and associate professor at the Washington University in St. Louis Bursky School of Public Health. “By linking data across the New Orleans Police Department, the Louisiana Department of Health, and the Orleans Parish Coroner’s Office, we are able to construct a far more complete and accurate account of firearm violence trends in New Orleans. This kind of multi-source approach is essential for public health—because the decisions we make about where to invest, who to reach, and what strategies to use are only as good as the data underlying them.”

"Effective violence prevention requires the same public health approach we use for any major health challenge,” said Dr. Jordan Vaughn, MD, public health clinical director for the New Orleans Department of Health and Human Services. “Data allows us to understand where interventions are needed, but we never forget that every life lost to gun violence represents a person, a family, and a community. At the New Orleans Department of Health and Human Services, we ensure our efforts are guided by evidence. By equipping our community partners and health care providers with shared information, we are creating a more coordinated ecosystem that has greater impact and will ultimately save lives.”

"Ubuntu Village NOLA reduces violence by addressing root causes while also intervening and mediating conflicts,” said Ernest Johnson, director of Ubuntu Village. “Data like this can help our teams understand historic trends in firearm violence to know where to focus outreach efforts and what resources might be most important to bring into the neighborhood."

“The New Orleans Firearm Violence Dashboard will be a valuable tool to decrease violence throughout our neighborhoods,” said Roberta Dubuclet, director of violence prevention for the New Orleans Department of Health and Human Services “Combining data with the human aspect of violence ensures our strategy remains focused where it matters most: on community-centered solutions that save lives."

“Violence doesn't happen in a vacuum,” said Dr. Kim Mosby, associate director of research, Vera Louisiana. “Our analysis shows that firearm violence is not distributed equally across the city. Neighborhoods with lower rates of poverty, stable housing, and reliable access to basic needs experience lower rates of firearm homicide. Lives are shaped by neighborhoods and policymakers, who decide where housing, jobs, and opportunities are located. We need policy decisions and investment that build safe, thriving communities in each neighborhood to help reduce firearm violence in New Orleans.”

“City and community leaders in New Orleans know firearm violence is a public health issue," said Dr. Kerry Mulligan, associate director of research, Vera Institute of Justice’s Redefining Public Safety Initiative. “This tool builds on that knowledge. By creating a more complete picture of firearm violence dynamics and the structural factors that are associated with lower rates of firearm violence in some neighborhoods, decision-makers are empowered with critical information to design effective strategies and direct investments to address firearm violence, improve public health, and increase community safety.”