FACT BRIEF

Are mass shootings committed with a shotgun more lethal than those committed with a semiautomatic rifle?

Friday, June 10, 2022

By Lisa Freedland

Copy link

Copy featured image

The most lethal mass shootings have all been committed with semiautomatic weapons —either rifles or handguns.

Mother Jones keeps a database of mass shootings dating back to 1982. Of these, six of the 10 most lethal incidents were committed with a semiautomatic rifle as the primary weapon. Within the top 30, only one incident involving a shotgun as the primary weapon is present, at number 29.

The database also suggests that semiautomatic rifles are used more frequently than shotguns in mass shootings. Only six of 129 documented incidents were committed with a shotgun as the primary weapon.

A 12-gauge shotgun is more powerful than an AR-15 at close range and expels more fire. However, shotgun pellets and slugs more rapidly lose power with distance and are less accurate vis-à-vis AR-15s. The long-range lethality and precision of semiautomatic rifles contribute to their frequent use by mass shooters.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.

Sources

Mother Jones US Mass Shootings, 1982–2022: Data From Mother Jones’ Investigation

Liberty Safe Shotgun vs. Rifle: Which Is Better for Home Defense and Hunting

ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTOR

Gigafact

Between 2020 and 2022, under close editorial supervision, Gigafact contracted a group of freelance writers and editors to test the concepts for fact briefs and provide inputs to our software development process. We call this effort Gigafact Foundry. Over the course of these two years, Gigafact Foundry writers published over 1500 fact briefs in response to claims they found online. Their important work forms the basis of Gigafact formats and editorial guidelines, and is available to the public on Gigafact.org. Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of relevant information to be found, not all fact briefs produced by Gigafact Foundry reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date and need to be looked at with fresh eyes, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.

FACT BRIEF BY

Latest fact briefs

About fact briefs published on Gigafact

Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.