Gun Thefts from Cars: The Largest Source of Stolen Guns

Key Findings

In cities that report crime data to the FBI:

• On average, at least one gun is stolen from a car every nine minutes in the United States.
• The rate of gun thefts from cars is triple what it was a decade ago. This includes both consistent increases nearly every year over the decade and a marked spike during the pandemic. 
• A decade ago, roughly a quarter of gun thefts were from cars; in 2022, over half were.
• Cars parked at residences (in driveways, outside homes, etc.) are the most common source of stolen guns, demonstrating the importance of securely storing guns at all times and locations.
• Cities in states with the weakest gun safety laws see nearly 18 times the rate of gun thefts from cars as those in states with the strongest gun laws.
• Memphis, Tennessee—the city with the highest rate of guns stolen from cars—had over 3,000 gun thefts from vehicles in 2022. A range of cities in Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, and Rhode Island, reported zero gun thefts from cars. 

On July 22, 2021, a gun was stolen from an unlocked car in Riverside, Florida. Twelve days later, the gun was used in the murder of a 27-year-old US Coast Guard member as she attempted to intervene in a neighborhood car burglary.¹Corley Peel, “Gun Stolen from Car in Riverside Entered into Evidence in Coast Guard Member’s Murder,” WJXT, August 18, 2021, https://bit.ly/3IhsrCw.

Explore Trends in Gun Thefts From Cars By City

Source: Everytown Research analysis of FBI NIBRS data, 2013–2022. Note: Includes 159 small to large cities located in over half of US states. FBI NIBRS

Introduction

The majority of gun homicides and assaults involve stolen or illegal guns.²Anthony Fabio et al., “Gaps Continue in Firearm Surveillance: Evidence from a Large U.S. City Bureau of Police,” Social Medicine 10, no. 1 (2016): 13–21, https://socialmedicine.info/index.php/socialmedicine/article/view/852; Daniel C. Semenza et al., “Firearm Availability, Homicide, and the Context of Structural Disadvantage,” Homicide Studies (September 2021): 1–21, https://doi.org/10.1177/10887679211043806. But where do these guns come from, and how are they getting into dangerous hands? Research from Everytown for Gun Safety Support Fund finds that in cities that report data to the FBI, gun thefts from cars are the largest source of stolen guns. 

In order to understand the scope of the problem, Everytown analyzed crime data from 337 small- to large-size cities across 44 states—covering roughly 63 million people—obtained from the FBI’s National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS).³Everytown Research analysis of FBI National Incident Based Reporting System (NIBRS) data, 2003–2022, and American Community Survey (ACS) population data, 2022, accessed January 2024. Analysis used data from all cities with both a population of 65,000+ people and complete 2022 data (i.e., 12 months of data reported). The 337 cities were located in 44 states: AL (3), AR (6), AZ (9), CA (6), CO (17), CT (8), DE (1), GA (6), IA (9), ID (3), IL (11), IN (8), KS (3), KY (2), LA (3), MA (16), ME (1), MI (16), MN (13), MO (9), MS (1), MT (2), NC (14), ND (2), NE (1), NH (2), NJ (3), NM (1), NV (5), NY (5), OH (9), OK (6), OR (8), PA (2), RI (4), SC (5), SD (2), TN (9), TX (56), UT (9), VA (11), WA (19), WI (10), WY (1). Of those cities, 159 cities in 27 states submitted 10 years (2013–2022) of complete data and were included in longitudinal analyses. An additional analysis was done on cities that submitted 20 years (2003–2022) worth of complete data, of which there were 84 cities in 17 states. Analyses revealed that in 2022, nearly 112,000 guns were reported stolen in these cities.⁴Everytown Research analysis of FBI NIBRS data of 337 cities, 2022, and ACS population data, 2022, accessed January 2024. Overall gun thefts include those from cars, pickpocketing, purse-snatching, shoplifting, buildings, and all other types of larceny, robbery, and burglary. Gun theft incident counts were multiplied by the average number of guns stolen per gun theft incident (1.5, per Hemenway et al. 2017 & Cook 2018). David Hemenway, Deborah Azrael, and Matthew Miller, “Whose Guns Are Stolen? The Epidemiology of Gun Theft Victims,” Injury Epidemiology 4, no. 1 (December 2017): 1–5, https://doi.org/10.1186/s40621-017-0109-8; Philip J. Cook, “Gun Theft and Crime,” Journal of Urban Health 95 (2018): 305–12, https://doi.org/10.1007/s11524-018-0253-7. This is likely a conservative estimate since only a third of US states legally require reporting of lost and stolen guns to law enforcement, and thus thousands of missing guns go unreported annually.⁵Fabio et al., “Gaps Continue in Firearm Surveillance;” Cook, “Gun Theft and Crime.” While guns can be stolen in a variety of ways and places (e.g., from people’s houses or from gun shops, or individuals directly), in 2022, just over half (51 percent) were stolen from cars.⁶Everytown Research analysis of FBI NIBRS data of 159 cities, 2013–2022, and ACS population data, 2013–2022, accessed January 2024. This amounted to nearly 62,000 guns stolen from cars in 2022 across these 337 cities.⁷Everytown Research analysis of FBI NIBRS data of 337 cities, 2022, and ACS population data, 2022, accessed January 2024. An incident of gun theft from a vehicle is defined as an incident where there was a theft from a vehicle and a firearm was listed among the property stolen. Gun theft incident counts were multiplied by the average number of guns stolen per gun theft incident (1.5, per Hemenway et al., 2017 & Cook, 2018). Hemenway et al., “Whose Guns Are Stolen? The Epidemiology of Gun Theft Victims;” Cook, “Gun Theft and Crime.” 

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On average, at least one gun is stolen from a car every nine minutes in the United States.

Source: Everytown Research analysis of FBI NIBRS data of 337 cities, 2022, and ACS population data, 2022, accessed January 2024.

Why do guns stolen from cars merit attention? The principal reason is that these stolen guns are often used in other crimes. Local leaders and law enforcement periodically raise public awareness about the importance of always storing guns securely in cars and locking car doors. And companies sell gun safes for every model of car and truck on the road. But with an average of at least one gun stolen from a car every nine minutes,⁸Everytown Research analysis of FBI NIBRS data of 337 cities, 2022, accessed January 2024. there is more we must be doing. This report examines trends in gun thefts from cars, explores the role that gun safety laws can play in reducing these thefts, and highlights the policies and practices that can prevent guns from passing from legal hands into the illegal firearms market. 

Why Are Gun Thefts From Cars On The Rise?

The rate of gun thefts from cars across FBI-reporting cities tripled over the past decade, rising from an estimated 21.0 thefts per 100,000 people in 2013 to 63.1 per 100,000 in 2022.⁹Everytown Research analysis of FBI NIBRS data of 159 cities, 2013–2022, and ACS population data, 2013–2022, accessed January 2024. Over this time, there were fairly consistent annual increases, and a spike of 51 percent during the pandemic. There has also been a major change in where guns have been stolen from over the past decade.¹⁰Everytown Research analysis of FBI NIBRS data of 159 cities, 2013–2022, and ACS population data, 2013–2022, accessed January 2024. The rate of gun theft from cars was 39.9 in 2019, prior to the pandemic, and 60.2 in 2021, the last full year of the pandemic. A decade ago, the majority of gun thefts were from burglaries of a home or other structure (38 percent), and roughly a quarter (26 percent) were from cars.¹¹Everytown Research analysis of FBI NIBRS data of 159 cities, 2013–2022, and ACS population data, 2013–2022, accessed January 2024. Since then, the nation has seen a stark increase to over half coming from cars. In fact, the past decade’s overall increase in gun thefts is driven primarily by the rise in gun thefts from cars.

A DECADE AGO, A QUARTER OF GUN THEFTS WERE FROM CARS. IN 2022, OVER HALF WERE.

More research is needed to understand all of the factors that are driving this increase. This data does, however, provide some insights. This trend doesn’t seem to be associated with an increase in thefts from vehicles overall. In fact, the rate of thefts from vehicles overall has decreased 11 percent over the past decade in cities that report data to the FBI while the rate of thefts of guns from vehicles soared over 200 percent.¹²Everytown Research analysis of FBI NIBRS data of 159 cities, 2013–2022, accessed January 2024. Other gun theft locations include roads (20 percent), parking lots (32 percent), and other/unknown (12 percent). Over the entire 10-year period the percentage of incidents where the gun was stolen from a car at a residence ranged from 29 percent to 40 percent, and in total 36 percent of incidents (35,602 / 98,821) occurred at a residence. Second, the rise in gun thefts from cars is not likely associated with cars now being parked in different or more dangerous types of locations either. Over the past 10 years, 36 percent of car gun thefts in these 159 cities have occurred at people’s residences, whether in the driveway or near the home of the gun owner or others.¹³Everytown Research analysis of FBI NIBRS data of 159 cities, 2013–2022, accessed January 2024. Other gun theft locations include roads (20 percent), parking lots (32 percent), and other/unknown (12 percent). Over the entire 10-year period the percentage of incidents where the gun was stolen from a car at a residence ranged from 29 percent to 40 percent. Over the entire 10-year period 36 percent of incidents (35,602 / 98,821) occurred at a residence. 

RESIDENCES ARE THE LEADING LOCATION OF GUN THEFTS FROM CARS

Source: Everytown Research analysis of FBI NIBRS data of 159 cities, 2013–2022.

In cities located in states with the weakest gun safety laws, the rate of gun thefts from cars is nearly 18 times higher than those in states with the strongest laws.¹⁴There is a significant negative correlation (r = –0.354, p < 0.000) between the strength of gun laws as measured by Everytown’s 2024 Gun Law Rankings, and the rate of incidents of gun theft from cars in the 337 cities that reported data to the FBI in 2022. In 2022, the rate for cities in states with the weakest gun laws—called “National Failures”—is 81.3 thefts per 100,000 people. Cities in states with the strongest laws—the “National Leaders”—have a rate of 4.6, which is 17.7 times higher than the National Failures. In many of these cities, high rates of gun ownership and laws that make it easier to carry guns in public create conditions under which gun thefts from cars may be more likely.¹⁵Terry Schell et al., “State-Level Estimates of Household Firearm Ownership,” RAND Corporation, April 22, 2020, https://www.rand.org/research/gun-policy/gun-ownership.html. Four out of the five cities with the highest rates of gun thefts from cars are in states with particularly weak gun laws. In Memphis, Tennessee, and Atlanta, Georgia, there were an estimated 3,315 and 2,499 guns stolen from cars in 2022, respectively.¹⁶Everytown Research analysis of FBI NIBRS data of 337 cities, 2022, accessed January 2024. Gun theft incident counts were multiplied by the average number of guns stolen per gun theft incident (1.5, per Hemenway et al., “Whose Guns Are Stolen? The Epidemiology of Gun Theft Victims;” Cook, “Gun Theft and Crime.” Both states have weak gun safety laws. This is in marked contrast to the 12 cities with zero guns reported stolen from cars in 2022, like Yonkers in New York; Cambridge, Somerville, Quincy, and Waltham in Massachusetts; and Elizabeth in New Jersey—all in states that lead the nation in the strength of their gun safety laws.¹⁷The complete list of cities with zero gun thefts from cars in 2022 is as follows: Brockton, MA, Cambridge, MA, Haverhill, MA, Lawrence, MA, Quincy, MA, Somerville, MA, Waltham, MA, Newton, MA, Elizabeth, NJ, Yonkers, NY, Pawtucket, RI, and Janesville, WI. 

Risk Factors and Protective Factors: The Socio-Ecological Model
	Rate per 100,000 people
1. Memphis, TN	351
2. Atlanta, GA	337
3. St. Louis, MO	288
4. Richmond, VA	218
5. San Antonio, TX	209

A clear example of the importance of state policies can be seen in Tennessee. Memphis, Tennessee, has the highest rate of gun theft from cars of any American city reported to the FBI.¹⁸Everytown Research analysis of FBI NIBRS data of 337 cities, 2022; Jessica Jaglois, “2,100 Guns Stolen from Cars in Memphis in 2023, a Slight Decrease Year to Year,” Action News 5, January 25, 2024, https://www.actionnews5.com/2024/01/26/2100-guns-stolen-cars-memphis-2023-slight-decrease-year-to-year/. Relative to cities outside the state, cities in Tennessee experienced a sharper increase in their rate of gun thefts from cars over the past decade, leading them to have a higher rate today.¹⁹Everytown Research analysis of FBI NIBRS data, 2003–2022; American Community Survey (ACS) population data, 2010–2022 and Census Intercensal Population Estimates, 2000–2009, accessed January 2024. Analysis used data from all cities with both a population of 65,000+ people and 12 months of data reported each year across the 2003–2022 data. Analysis includes nine cities in Tennessee (Chattanooga, Clarksville, Franklin, Jackson, Johnson City, Knoxville, Memphis, Murfreesboro, and Nashville) compared to 75 cities in 17 other states. States with cities included are: AR (1), CO (7), CT (1), DE (1), IA (7), ID (3), KS (1), MA (4), MI (10), ND (1), OH (4), OR (1), SC (5), TX (11), UT (7), VA (11). Incident and population data for the reporting cities in Tennessee were combined to create an overall rate. The same process was used for cities outside of Tennessee to create the non-Tennessee cities group.

Explore Rates of Gun Thefts From Cars in 2022

Source: Everytown Research analysis of FBI NIBRS data of 337 cities across 44 states, 2022.

The trends of gun theft from cars in cities inside and outside of Tennessee show a very similar progression prior to 2013, but the rates of gun thefts from cars in Tennessee dramatically increased after 2013.²⁰Anita Wadhwani, “Gun Thefts from Cars up 85 Percent in Two Years in Tennessee, Some Police Blame Laws,” The Tennessean, February 17, 2019, https://www.tennessean.com/story/news/2019/02/17/gun-laws-tennessee-thefts-cars-up/2871666002/. Why? In 2013, Tennessee lawmakers passed a law that allowed handgun carry permit holders to store their firearms in parked vehicles.²¹Tennessee Senate Bill 142 (2013). By 2014, they allowed all legal gun owners to do the same.²²Tennessee Senate Bill 1774 (2013). Incidents of gun theft from vehicles in Tennessee cities since these laws were passed are nearly triple what they were during the prior decade.²³Everytown Research analysis of FBI NIBRS data, 2003–2022. From 2003 to 2012, there were 6,867 incidents of gun theft from vehicles, compared to 20,431 from 2015 to 2022, 2.98 times as high as from 2003–2012. Since 2013, more than 29,000 firearms have been stolen from vehicles statewide, according to a News Channel 5 Nashville analysis.²⁴Phil Williams, “Revealed: Nearly 30,000 Firearms Stolen from Vehicles since Tennessee GOP Relax Gun Laws,” News Channel 5 Nashville, January 30, 2024, https://www.newschannel5.com/news/newschannel-5-investigates/revealed/revealed-nearly-30-000-firearms-stolen-from-vehicles-since-tennessee-gop-relaxed-gun-laws. During this same period, gun homicides increased 85 percent in Tennessee, well surpassing the already unacceptable US trend on gun homicide.²⁵Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics, WONDER Online Database, Underlying Cause of Death. Percent change in age-adjusted rate: 2013 vs. 2022. Homicide includes shootings by police. 

GUN THEFTS FROM CARS ROSE STARKLY IN TENNESSEE’S CITIES

Solutions

The rate of gun thefts from cars has soared over the past decade and there’s strong evidence that the majority of gun homicides–especially those in cities–involve illegal guns, with theft being one source.²⁶Guns stolen from gun dealers and private people are the third most common form of trafficked gun after unlicensed dealers and straw purchasers.  ATF National Firearm Commerce and Trafficking Assessment Volume III Part V, 2024. https://www.atf.gov/firearms/docs/report/nfcta-volume-iii-part-v/download So every gun stolen from a car increases the chances it could be used in a violent crime. 

The hopeful news is that we can all play a role in preventing the diversion of guns from the legal market and from ending up behind yellow tape at crime scenes. What are the solutions? 

• Most immediately, gun owners must always lock their vehicles and secure their guns in those vehicles so that they are not visible. There is a gun safe for sale for every make and model of vehicle and devices that make it easier to securely store guns.
• Local elected officials, community leaders, law enforcement, and others must support public awareness campaigns on how to prevent thefts from cars and the acts of violence that can follow. Proactive efforts are underway in a number of cities. In San Antonio, Texas, a nonprofit alliance is raising funds to purchase and distribute car gun safes.²⁷Andrew Moore, “How Drivers Can Secure Their Firearms in Their Vehicles, Avoid Having Guns Stolen,” KENS 5, December 26, 2023, https://www.kens5.com/article/news/local/criminals-stole-guns-from-vehicles-how-you-can-avoid-having-your-gun-stolen/273-db20fef2-3cc3-4ffd-b879-509b33b6b711. Police in Hoover, Alabama, have reported success with their “Lock It or Lose It” public awareness campaign.²⁸Aajene Robinson, “Hoover PD Launches ‘Lock It or Lose It’ Campaign to Ensure a Safer Community,” WBRC, October 4, 2023, https://www.wbrc.com/2023/10/04/hoover-pd-launches-lock-it-or-lose-it-campaign-ensure-safer-community/. In some areas, police departments are working with the ATF or the FBI to produce public service announcements, other agencies are making flyers and handouts to raise awareness and are encouraging gun owners to make their cars less visible targets by removing decals or bumper stickers indicating a firearm may be in the vehicle. And the Be SMART program promotes secure storage nationwide to help parents, caretakers, and community leaders have the knowledge and conversations to keep our communities safe. 
• Legislators at all levels must pass laws that are proven to help prevent these thefts. The highest-priority policies are, first, laws that require guns to be securely stored and not visible when left unattended in cars. States including California, Connecticut, and Oregon have done so and can serve as examples.²⁹Cal. Penal Code § 25140; Conn. Gen. Stat. § 29-38g; O.R.S. § 166.395(1)(b)(B). Second, immediate, mandatory reporting of lost and stolen guns enables law enforcement to investigate the theft and any possible gun trafficking, and allows us to better understand where and when these incidents are happening to help focus prevention efforts. Research has shown that these reporting laws can reduce illegal gun movements by 46 percent compared to states without this law.³⁰Leo H. Kahane, “Understanding the Interstate Export of Crime Guns: A Gravity Model Approach,” Contemporary Economic Policy 31, no. 3 (2013): 618–34, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1465-7287.2012.00324.x.

We know how to prevent these incidents and to save families and communities from the heartbreak and long-lasting trauma of the violence that can result. Now is the time for action.