KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Violent crimes have dropped nationally, but also here in Kansas City, with homicides down from 145 at this time last year to 117 at the same time this year.
Local activists say they see the strides that have contributed to the drop, but agree we still have a long way to go to reduce the number of killed each year in Kansas City, Missouri.
“When they say crime is being down in Kansas City, going by numbers for me it's not,” said Rosilyn Temple, the founder and program director for KC Mothers in Charge.
The group works with families that have lost a loved one to homicide.
Crime, including violent incidents like murder and rape, dropped nationally according to new data released by the FBI.
Murder dropped 11.6% during the 2022-2023 period, making it the largest single- year decline in the last two decades.
“Homicides are down, but people are still getting shot,” said Temple. “That’s trauma. We’re dealing with trauma and mental health issues in our community.”
While property crimes are up in KCMO, homicides are down.
“When you talk about the number of community organizations that are coming together and working diligently and more collaboratively to address the issue,” said Damon Daniel, president and CEO of Ad Hoc Group Against Crime. “When you think about the fact that the city of KCMO, as well as the philanthropic community' has been really looking at this issue and seeing how they can contribute to organization's capacity to address the issue as well. I think that is helping, but we have a long way to go.”
Violent crime was down about 3% from 2022 to 2023, and property crime took a drop of 2.4%, the FBI reported in its annual "Summary of Crime in the Nation." Daniel believes that to solve the problem completely we must address the root of the problem
Rosilyn and Damon believe the root cause is trauma.
“Violence is not just in terms of physical violence, but economic violence, racism, and things of that nature,” said Daniel. “That has created generations that have been impacted by trauma and that trauma has gone unchecked and unaddressed.”
While violent crime is down, the report showed that motor vehicle theft and shoplifting have risen.
