South's high murder rate is key factor in why U.S. homicide rate is so high

Jet, August 17, 1998

The Federal Bureau of Investigation found that Southern states have the highest murder rates.

And experts believe the high Southern murder rate is a key factor behind America's high homicide rate in comparison with other democratic, industrialized nations, according to an article in The New York Times.

They note that much of the distinction in murder rates between the South and other sections of the country comes from a difference in the character of Southern homicide.

It was found that many murders in the South are of a personal and traditional nature such as a barroom brawl, a quarrel between acquaintances or a fight between lovers. In other places, the newspaper reported, homicides usually begin with another crime like a botched robbery, and typically involve strangers.

In 1996, the U.S. murder rate was 7.4 per 100,000 people. The rate that same year state by state showed 12 of the 20 states with the highest murder rates are in the South.

States topping the list of murders per 100,000: Louisiana (17.5), Mississippi (11.1), Alabama (10.4), Tennessee (9.5) and South Carolina (9.0).