The majority of mass shootings in the U.S. take place in private. They occur in the home, and the victims are predominantly women and children.

The untold story of mass shootings in America is one of domestic violence. It is one of men (yes, mostly men) targeting and killing their wives or ex-girlfriends or families. The victims are intimately familiar to the shooters, not random strangers. This kind of violence is not indiscriminate — though friends, neighbors and bystanders are often killed alongside the intended targets. ...

Experts often call domestic homicides the most predictable and preventable of all homicides, because of the many warning signs.

"If we want to dramatically reduce the number of mass shootings, we could pay a lot more attention to domestic violence at an earlier stage," said Kim Gandy, president of the National Network To End Domestic Violence. "Many domestic homicides could be prevented with appropriate intervention and services."