Do you live in one of the murder capitals of Nevada?
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 Nevada.
The result is the Murder Capitals of the Silver State for 2023:
- Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department
- North Las Vegas
- Elko
- Reno
- Sparks
- Henderson
What city has the highest murder rate in Nevada? The city with the highest murder rate in Nevada is Elko with 14.5 murders per 100,000 people.
What is the city in Nevada with highest number of murders? The city in Nevada with the highest number of murders is Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department with 152 murders.
Read on below to see how we crunched the numbers and how your town in Nevada ranked. There were ‘only’ 6 cities in Nevada where a city reported a murder to the FBI, meaning 8 places had no murder.
For more reading on the Silver State check out:
Article Table Of Contents
The 10 Murder Capitals Of Nevada For 2023
1. Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department
Population: 1,685,021
Rank Last Year: 2
Murders: 152 (Most)
Murders Per 100k: 9.0 (3rd Most)
More on Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department:
/10
Population: 264,877
Rank Last Year: 1
Murders: 27 (2nd Most)
Murders Per 100k: 10.2 (2nd Most)
More on North Las Vegas: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 20,760
Rank Last Year: 3
Murders: 3 (6th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 14.5 (Most)
More on Elko: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 262,919
Rank Last Year: 4
Murders: 17 (3rd Most)
Murders Per 100k: 6.5 (5th Most)
More on Reno: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 108,612
Rank Last Year: 7
Murders: 8 (5th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 7.4 (4th Most)
More on Sparks: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
/10
Population: 337,375
Rank Last Year: 6
Murders: 14 (4th Most)
Murders Per 100k: 4.1 (6th Most)
More on Henderson: Data | Cost Of Living | Crime Report
Methodology: How we calculated the murder capitals of Nevada
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 Nevada for which FBI data was available for the most recent FBI Crime In The United States. That left us with 6 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 Nevada and is updated for 2023.
Summary: The Places With The Most Murders In Nevada For 2023
If you’re looking at the places in Nevada 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 Nevada reading, check out:
- Best Places To Raise A Family In Nevada
- Fastest Growing Cities In Nevada
- Safest Places In Nevada
- Best Cities For Singles In Nevada
- Worst Places To Live In Nevada
Detailed List Of The Places With The Most Murder In Nevada For 2023
| Rank | City | Murders |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department, NV | 152 |
| 2 | North Las Vegas, NV | 27 |
| 3 | Elko, NV | 3 |
| 4 | Reno, NV | 17 |
| 5 | Sparks, NV | 8 |
| 6 | Henderson, NV | 14 |
