Do you live in one of the murder capitals of Kansas?
We all watch the news with horror when we hear about a homicide that happens not that far away from us. While a murder just blocks or even a couple of towns away from your house would make anyone uneasy, in the long run, most likely, where you live is relatively safe.
So we wanted to get the facts straight and dug into the FBI crime data in order to identify the places with the most murders and the highest murder rates per capita in Kansas.
The result is the Murder Capitals of the Sunflower State for 2023:
What city has the highest murder rate in Kansas? The city with the highest murder rate in Kansas is Fort Scott with 26.3 murders per 100,000 people.
What is the city in Kansas with highest number of murders? The city in Kansas with the highest number of murders is Wichita with 33 murders.
Read on below to see how we crunched the numbers and how your town in Kansas ranked. There were ‘only’ 19 cities in Kansas where a city reported a murder to the FBI, meaning 38 places had no murder.
For more reading on the Sunflower State check out:
Article Table Of Contents
The 10 Murder Capitals Of Kansas For 2023
/10
Population: 25,920
Rank Last Year: 6
Murders: 4 (4th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 15.4 (3rd Most)
More on Garden City: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 35,990
Rank Last Year: 2
Murders: 5 (3rd Most)
Murders Per 100k: 13.9 (5th Most)
More on Leavenworth: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 21,242
Rank Last Year: 1
Murders: 3 (5th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 14.1 (4th Most)
More on Junction City: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 7,607
Rank Last Year: 32
Murders: 2 (8th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 26.3 (Most)
More on Fort Scott: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 9,066
Rank Last Year: 30
Murders: 2 (8th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 22.1 (2nd Most)
More on Coffeyville: Data | Cost Of Living
/10
Population: 125,655
Rank Last Year: –
Murders: 12 (2nd Most)
Murders Per 100k: 9.5 (9th Most)
More on Topeka: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 390,080
Rank Last Year: –
Murders: 33 (Most)
Murders Per 100k: 8.5 (11th Most)
More on Wichita: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 18,705
Rank Last Year: 19
Murders: 2 (8th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 10.7 (7th Most)
More on Newton: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 9,290
Rank Last Year: 29
Murders: 1 (15th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 10.8 (6th Most)
More on Augusta: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 46,112
Rank Last Year: –
Murders: 2 (8th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 4.3 (15th Most)
More on Salina: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
Methodology: How we calculated the murder capitals of Kansas
While there are surveys and public polls on what cities in a state are the most dangerous, we didn’t want to rely on speculation and opinion. Instead, we looked at the hard numbers from the FBI’s last year of reporting. Specifically, we analyzed the FBI’s Uniform Crime Report which summarizes the number of murders that may happen in each city per year.
We only looked every single city in Kansas for which FBI data was available for the most recent FBI Crime In The United States. That left us with 19 cities to rank.
Finally, we averaged the two scores into an index:
- The raw number of murders in each city
- The murders per person
We felt as if a small place with 2,500 people and two murders makes it a lot more dangerous than a city of 25,000 people with three murders. Any ties went to the larger city.
This article is an opinion based on facts. It is our tenth time ranking the most places with the most murders per capita in Kansas and is updated for 2023.
Summary: The Places With The Most Murders In Kansas For 2023
If you’re looking at the places in Kansas with the most murders, and where residents have the highest chances of being killed themselves, this is an accurate list. Again, these statistics are an indication of where crimes occur, not a statement about the effectiveness of the law enforcement in the areas they serve.
For more Kansas reading, check out:
Detailed List Of The Places With The Most Murder In Kansas For 2023
| Rank | City | Murders |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Garden City, KS | 4 |
| 2 | Leavenworth, KS | 5 |
| 3 | Junction City, KS | 3 |
| 4 | Fort Scott, KS | 2 |
| 5 | Coffeyville, KS | 2 |
| 6 | Topeka, KS | 12 |
| 7 | Wichita, KS | 33 |
| 8 | Newton, KS | 2 |
| 9 | Augusta, KS | 1 |
| 10 | Salina, KS | 2 |
| 11 | Parsons, KS | 1 |
| 12 | Arkansas City, KS | 1 |
| 13 | Olathe, KS | 2 |
| 14 | Great Bend, KS | 1 |
| 15 | Pittsburg, KS | 1 |
| 16 | Hays, KS | 1 |
| 17 | Derby, KS | 1 |
| 18 | Dodge City, KS | 1 |
| 19 | Overland Park, KS | 1 |
