Church attacks triple: FBI reports 42% rise in active shooter incidents

The FBI released its annual active shooter report July 30, finding that 34 such attacks occurred across 21 states and Washington, D.C., in 2025 — a 42% increase from 24 incidents in 2024.

Commerce locations were the most common settings, accounting for 14 incidents and 68 casualties. But attacks at houses of worship carried a sharply disproportionate toll. The three church attacks represented just 9% of all incidents but caused nearly 26% of the casualties: six people were killed and 37 wounded. Church attacks tripled from one in 2024, and their average of 14.3 casualties per incident was nearly three times the overall average of 4.9.

Overall, the attacks killed 51 people and wounded 115, not including the shooters. The combined casualty count of 166 was 57% higher than the 106 casualties recorded the previous year. Seven incidents met the FBI’s definition of a mass killing – at least three victims killed in one incident, excluding the attacker – more than double the three recorded in 2024.

The one-year increase came with an important qualification: The 2025 total remained below the five-year average of 43.4 attacks. The FBI counted 61 incidents in 2021, 50 in 2022, and 48 in 2023 before the number fell to 24 in 2024, leading the bureau to describe the five-year trend as downward.

The year’s highest casualty toll came at Annunciation Roman Catholic Church in Minneapolis. During an Aug. 27 back-to-school Mass, an attacker barricaded exits and fired from outside through the church windows, killing two children and wounding 28 people. 

As Zeale News previously reported, 10-year-old Victor Greenawalt shielded a classmate and other children with his body during the attack, suffering wounds to his head and back. The Congressional Medal of Honor Society later named him a 2026 Young Hero Honoree for his courage.

The other church attacks also prompted heroism on the part of worshippers. At CrossPointe Community Church in Wayne, Michigan, a parishioner struck the gunman with a vehicle before armed church security killed him; one security member was wounded. At a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints meetinghouse in Grand Blanc Township, Michigan, a congregant fired at an attacker who had rammed the building, opened fire, and set it ablaze. The congregant was wounded before police killed the attacker; four victims died and eight were wounded.

Those actions reflected a broader increase in civilian response. Members of the targeted population intervened in seven of the 34 attacks, up from one of 24 in 2024. Civilians disarmed or restrained shooters in four incidents and used firearms or a vehicle in three. On-site security intervened in three attacks, while law enforcement intervened during 13 attacks that were still underway.

The bureau classified all 34 shooters as male; their ages ranged from 16 to 77. They used 49 firearms — 26 handguns, 16 rifles, and seven shotguns. Sixteen shooters were apprehended, 10 died by suicide, five were killed by law enforcement, two were killed by security personnel, and one remained at large when the report was completed.

“No single behavior means someone will commit violence,” the FBI cautioned, but earlier reporting of warning signs can create more opportunities to intervene. The bureau urged people who believe someone is planning an attack to contact law enforcement and published preparedness and threat-reporting resources for schools, workplaces, houses of worship, and other public spaces.