Health Indicator Report of Homicide
From 2019 to 2023, the Utah age-adjusted homicide rate was 2.5 per 100,000 persons. This is an average of 83 homicides per year. Those aged 15-24 had the highest homicide rate.
Death by homicide takes an enormous toll on the mental and physical well-being of family members, friends, neighbors, and co-workers of the victim. The trauma, grief, and bereavement experienced by these individuals have long-lasting impacts that affect many aspects of their lives.
Death by homicide takes an enormous toll on the mental and physical well-being of family members, friends, neighbors, and co-workers of the victim. The trauma, grief, and bereavement experienced by these individuals have long-lasting impacts that affect many aspects of their lives.
Notes
Homicides are determined by using ICD-10 codes X85-X99, Y00-Y09, Y87.1, U01-U02.Data are age-adjusted to the U.S. 2000 standard population.
*Use caution in interpreting, the estimate has a relative standard error greater than 30% and does not meet DHHS standards for reliability.
Data Sources
- Utah Death Certificate Database, Office of Vital Records and Statistics, Utah Department of Health and Human Services
- For years 2010 and later, the population estimates are provided by the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute, Utah state and county annual population estimates are by single year of age and sex, IBIS Version 2023
- Population estimates for 2000-2009: National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) through a collaborative agreement with the U.S. Census Bureau, IBIS Version 2020
- National Center for Injury Prevention and Control's Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System (WISQARS)
Data Interpretation Issues
ICD stands for the International Classification of Diseases. It is a coding system maintained by the World Health Organization and the U.S. National Center for Health Statistics used to classify causes of death, such as homicide, on death certificates. These codes are updated every decade or so to account for advances in medical technology. The U.S. is currently using the 10th revision (ICD-10) to code causes of death and hospital and emergency department visits.Definition
Number of resident deaths resulting from the intentional use of force or power, threatened or actual, against another person, per 100,000 population. ICD-10 codes X85-X99, Y00-Y09, Y87.1, U01-U02.Numerator
Number of deaths resulting from the intentional use of force or power, threatened or actual, against another person.Denominator
Total number of persons in the population of Utah.Other Objectives
Healthy People Objective 2030 IVP-30:Reduce firearm-related deaths
U.S. Target: 10.7 deaths per 100,000 population
State Target: 9.0 firearm-related deaths per 100,000 population
How Are We Doing?
The 2019-2023 Utah age-adjusted homicide rate was 2.5 per 100,000 population. The homicide rate peaked in 2020 at 2.89, which is the highest rate since 2001, and declined in 2021 and 2022. The rate in 2023 was 2.18. There were 72 homicides in 2022 and 76 in 2023.In 2020, the 95 homicide deaths in Utah were the highest number of homicides recorded in Utah in the last 20 years. The lowest number of homicide deaths in 20 years occurred in 2004 with 42.
How Do We Compare With the U.S.?
The Utah homicide rate has been consistently lower than the national rate. From 2018-2022, the homicide rate for the U.S. was 7.1 per 100,000 population. For Utah during this same time period, the age-adjusted homicide rate was 2.5 per 100,000 population.Utah had the 3rd lowest homicide rate in the U.S. in 2022.
What Is Being Done?
The Utah Department of Health and Human Services Violence and Injury Prevention Program (VIPP) is funded by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to implement the Utah Violent Death Reporting System (UTVDRS). UTVDRS is a data collection and monitoring system that will help Utahns to better understand the public health problem of violence by informing decision-makers about the magnitude, trends, and characteristics of violent deaths such as homicide, and to evaluate and continue to improve state-based violence prevention policies and programs. Data are collected from the Office of the Medical Examiner, Vital Records, and law enforcement agencies and are linked together to help identify risk factors, understand circumstances, and better characterize perpetrators of violent deaths.VIPP also coordinates the Domestic Violence Fatality Review Committee (DVFRC) and the Child Fatality Review Committee (CFRC), whose members come from various statewide agencies and disciplines. Based on the data collected, both committees make recommendations to prevent these deaths.
Available Services
Utah Office For Victims Of Crime1-801-238-2360
Toll-free: 1-800-621-7444
https://crimevictim.utah.gov/
Utah Domestic Violence Coalition
https://www.udvc.org/
Statewide Domestic Violence LinkLine
1-800-897-LINK (5465)
Health Program Information
The Violence and Injury Prevention Program (VIPP) is a trusted and comprehensive resource for data related to violence and injury. Through education, this information helps promote partnerships and programs to prevent injuries and improve public health. VIPP goals are to a) focus prevention efforts on reducing intentional and unintentional injury, b) conduct education aimed at increasing awareness and changing behaviors that contribute to the occurrence of injury, c) strengthen local health department capacity to conduct local injury prevention programs, d) promote legislation, policy changes, and enforcement that will reduce injury hazards and increase safe behaviors, e) collaborate with private and public partners, and f) improve the Utah Department of Health and Human Services capacity to collect mortality and morbidity data from multiple sources and conduct injury epidemiology for use in prevention planning, implementation, and evaluation.
Page Content Updated On 10/01/2024,
Published on 10/07/2024
