Kansas City crime declining: Which offenses are leading the trend?

Kansas City crime declining: Which offenses are leading the trend?Photo: iStock
Hoodline
Published on October 04, 2019

The number of crime incidents in Kansas City saw an overall decrease last week, after a previous rise, according to data from SpotCrime, which collects reports from police agencies and validated sources. Incidents fell to 910 for the week of Sept. 23, down from 951 the week before.

The specific offenses that decreased the most were theft and vandalism. Theft fell to 331 incidents last week, from 351 the week before. Vandalism went from 81 to 68. Reports of vandalism have continued to fall for the last two weeks.

There was also a notable percentage decrease in robbery, from 30 incidents per week to 18 and in arson, from 11 to six incidents.

Among the few types of offenses that saw an uptick last week, reports of assault went from 188 to 199 and burglary rose from 70 to 78.

There were 210 reports of "other" crimes, a decrease of 10 from the previous week. SpotCrime's broad "other" category includes a variety of offenses like fraud, trespassing, public disturbance and traffic violations. Of those incidents, 109 involved arrests, such as for drug possession, up from 105 reported arrests the week before.

As far as where crime is concentrated in the city, Downtown, Sarritt Point and Shoal Creek had the most reported incidents last week. Downtown was at the top of the list the previous week as well.

Crime in North Hyde Park decreased the most. Crime reports in South Indian Mound also fell for a second week and incidents in Sterling Acres are down considerably as well.

Regarding day and time factors, Tuesday, Thursday and Wednesday saw the most reported crimes last week. The largest decrease from the previous week occurred on Sunday, Monday and Saturday, while incidents on Wednesday and Thursday went up. Comparing times of day, late afternoon, evening and late night continue to see the most crime incidents.

To report a crime in progress or life-threatening emergency, call 911. To report a non-urgent crime or complaint, contact your local police department.

Head to SpotCrime to get free local crime alerts in your area.

This story was created automatically using local crime data, then reviewed by an editor. Click here for more about our data sources and local crime methodology. Got thoughts about what we're doing? Go here to share your feedback.