Thurston County's rate of child abuse and neglect exceeds the Washington state average, according to violence data shared Aug. 25, from the county's 2025 Community Health Assessment.
The county logged 40 cases per 1,000 children ages 0 to 17, compared to 35 per 1,000 statewide.
Child Protective Services received 2,579 reports of suspected child abuse and neglect in 2024.
Thurston County Public Health & Social Services published the violence-related findings on its X account as part of a rolling release of data from the assessment, which was first presented to the Thurston County Board of Health on June 9.
The department identified violence-related trauma as one of eight priority health themes drawn from input by more than 1,800 county residents at 12 community events between August and November 2025.
Adverse childhood experiences hit girls hardest
Among 10th graders surveyed in the 2025 Healthy Youth Survey, 16% reported experiencing four or more adverse childhood experiences. Girls were nearly twice as likely as boys to report that level of exposure.
The assessment also found that 1,998 Thurston County residents were affected by domestic violence in 2024. The county's domestic violence offense rate of 7 per 1,000 people fell below the statewide rate of 9 per 1,000.
170 firearm deaths in five years
The toll is concentrated in suicides. Between 2020 and 2024, 170 people in Thurston County died from firearm-related causes, and 138 of those deaths, roughly 81%, were self-inflicted.
The Board of Health, chaired by Commissioner Carolina Mejia, proclaimed June 2026 as Gun Violence Awareness Month, citing a steady increase in Washington firearm deaths since 2018. Statewide, 4,830 people died from firearms between 2021 and 2025, with nearly three-quarters of those deaths being suicides.
In Thurston County, 718 firearms were reported stolen between 2019 and 2024, and 34% of local 8th graders said they believed it would be easy to get a handgun, above the state figure of 29%.
Only 45% of surveyed Thurston County firearm owners reported storing their weapons securely, based on surveys conducted between 2013 and 2022.
What comes next
The health department said the assessment's next phase is a Community Health Improvement Plan, described in the Board of Health agenda packet as "the roadmap for getting resources to those that need them most and for increasing access to care." The full report is available at thurstoncountywa.gov/community-health-assessment.
No adoption date for the improvement plan has been publicly announced.
If you are having suicidal thoughts, call or text 988 to reach the National Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.
