Annual report shows increase in property crime and decrease in violent crime in Kansas

LAWRENCE, Kansas (KANSAS REFLECTOR) – An annual report on crime in Kansas shows an increase in property crime and a decrease in violent crime, providing guidance for law enforcement and civic decision makers.

The Kansas Bureau of Investigation's Crime Index Report, which summarizes crime data submitted by law enforcement agencies across the state, shows that property crime increased 2.6% and violent crime decreased 3.7% from 2022 to 2023.

The number of reported property crimes rose to 66,782 cases.

According to the report, the overall crime index was “significantly impacted” by the increase in property crime, which rose from 26.7 crimes per 1,000 people in 2022 to 27 crimes per 1,000 people in 2023. The property crime rate was 10% below the 10-year average.

“Property crime rates have been steadily declining in recent years, making 2023 the first year since 2017 that the state saw an increase in property crime reports,” the report said. “It is believed that property crimes are underreported to law enforcement.”

The largest increase was recorded in vehicle theft, with an increase of 4.8%.

Law enforcement agencies recorded 13,294 violent crimes across the state. The violent crime rate was nearly 10% higher than the 10-year average.

The number of reported rape cases decreased by 12.6% or 161 cases from 2022 to 2023.

Although the crime statistics compiled by the KBI can be helpful in identifying trends, a KBI press release states, “It is often not possible to draw further interpretations or conclusions from the data. It relies on victims to report crimes.”

“Based on the numbers, we typically see more property crimes than violent crimes,” said Sergeant Drew Fennelly, Lawrence Police Department spokesman. “Crime affects each community very differently. The reasons for these trends may be very different in Wichita, Kansas City or Dodge City.”

Melissa Underwood, a spokeswoman for the KBI, did not respond to requests for comment for this article.

Adrianne Nuñez, spokeswoman for the Willow Domestic Violence Center in Lawrence, said the data is important for studying crime on a larger scale. Agencies like Willow use a variety of data from across the state to raise awareness or use it in training, she said.

“We believe tracking crime data is important. It gives us visibility into what is happening in our communities,” Nuñez said. “We hope these statistics continue to decline until our work becomes unnecessary. More specifically, we hope these statistics continue to evolve to reflect the most accurate information about our communities while keeping survivors safe.”

The report does not capture specific categories of murder or aggravated assault in the data, which can make it difficult to draw conclusions about statewide violence in smaller communities. While the 3.7% drop in violent crime overall is progress for Kansas, organizations like Moms Demand Action still worry about gun violence and incidents not captured in the annual report.

“I think it makes sense to track the data because it shows us things we can improve,” said Shannon Little, co-leader and volunteer at Moms Demand Action. “When you compare different data sets, you get different answers. Even though our violent crime rate has dropped by nearly 4%, Kansas still has some of the weakest gun safety laws in the country.”

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