Table 1.

Characteristics of violent deaths by blood alcohol concentration testing status, NVDRS, 2014–2016

Characteristics	Total	BAC Tested		BAC Not Tested		BAC Testing Status Unknown/Missing
	Na	n	%	n	%	n	%
Overall	95,390	54,492	57.1	2,188	2.3	38,710	40.6
Sex
Female	22,496	13,360	59.4	561	2.5	8,575	38.1
Male	72,888	41,132	56.4	1,627	2.2	30,129	41.4
Age Group (Years)
10–20	7,792	4,348	55.8	182	2.3	3,262	41.9
21–44	42,346	25,921	61.2	978	2.3	15,447	36.5
45–64	31,281	17,928	57.3	711	2.3	12,642	40.4
≥65	12,520	5,611	44.8	268	2.1	6,641	53.0
Race or Ethnicity
American Indian/Alaska Native, non-Hispanic	1,461	997	68.2	64	4.4	400	27.4
Asian/Pacific Islander, non-Hispanic	1,835	1,141	62.2	32	1.7	662	36.1
Black, non-Hispanic	18,406	11,144	60.5	472	2.6	6,790	36.9
Hispanic	6,604	4,583	69.4	135	2.0	1,886	28.6
White, non-Hispanic	65,642	35,789	54.5	1,456	2.2	28,397	43.3
Manner of Death
Suicide	61,070	32,152	52.6	1,396	2.3	27,522	45.1
Homicide	22,768	14,038	61.7	580	2.5	8,150	35.8
Undeterminedb	9,696	7,096	73.2	144	1.5	2,456	25.3
Otherc	1,856	1,206	65.0	68	3.7	582	31.4
Month of Death d
January – March	20,863	12,104	58.0	492	2.4	8,267	39.6
April – June	22,400	13,087	58.4	509	2.3	8,804	39.3
July – September	23,634	13,503	57.1	574	2.4	9,557	40.4
October – December	21,809	12,322	56.5	534	2.5	8,953	41.0
Death investigation system
Centralized State Medical Examiner	34,321	26,440	77.0	585	1.7	7,296	21.3
County/District-based Medical Examiner	14,754	8,444	57.2	361	2.5	5,949	40.3
County-based Mixed Medical Examiners and Coroners	31,867	12,574	39.5	1,072	3.4	18,221	57.2
County-based Coroners	14,448	7,034	48.7	170	1.2	7,244	50.1
Mechanism
Firearm	48,625	25,862	53.2	1,035	2.1	21,728	44.7
Hanging, strangulation, suffocation	17,944	9,534	53.1	385	2.2	8,025	44.7
Poisoning	16,009	11,611	72.5	459	2.9	3,939	24.6
Sharp instrument	3,894	2,495	64.1	97	2.5	1,302	33.4
Blunt instrument	1,278	766	59.9	46	3.6	466	36.5
Body parts as personal weapons	1,066	609	57.1	37	3.5	420	39.4
Othere	5,255	3,160	60.1	116	2.2	1,979	37.7

BAC: Blood alcohol concentration, NVDRS: National Violent Death Reporting System

^aSample sizes by characteristics may not sum to the total due to missing information for some decedents.

^bTo be included in NVDRS, deaths of undetermined intent must have some evidence of the possibility that the intent was purposeful, including use of a weapon or other evidence that force was used to inflict the injury. Most commonly, the coroner or medical examiner is unsure whether the death was a suicide or unintentional.

^cIncludes unintentional firearm deaths or deaths by legal intervention.

^dDeath date was based on date the death was pronounced, when available, and date of death when a date of death pronounced was not available.

^eIncludes drowning, fall, motor vehicle, fire or burns, other transport vehicle, violent shaking, intentional neglect, and other/unknown.