Homicide is the second leading cause of death for young Latinos, according to a report by the Violence Policy Center, a non-profit organization that backs gun control. 

"Our report shows that America's gun violence epidemic has a disproportionate impact on the Hispanic community," VPC Executive Director Josh Sugarmann said. "This epidemic of violence is destroying lives and tearing families apart, preventing gun violence should be an urgent priority for all public officials from community leaders to members of Congress."

According to the study, 41 percent of Latino homicide victims were age 24 and younger in 2011, in comparison to 40 percent of black and 22 percent of white homicide victims. 

The study also revealed guns were used in more than two-thirds of the homicides where the victims are Latino. 

According to the latest FBI data from 2011, 39 percent of Latino victims were killed by a stranger, compared to 25 percent of all homicide victims nationwide. 

VPC stated in its release that most of the statistics from the report are based on data from the Centers for Disease Control Prevention (CDC) as well as unpublished information from the Federal Bureau of Investigations Supplementary Homicide Report. 

The study also discovered the number of Latino victims is actually higher than the number reported in the study, because of "major shortcomings" public agencies have in the way they collect information. Government agencies often report on race but not ethnic origin, thus creating gaps in data, the study explains. In addition, VPC recommends government agencies improve how they gather data on deadly violence regarding Latinos.