Personal injury attorneys have revealed which U.S. states are the most dangerous to live in for crime, injury and incident-related deaths.
Death rates in the U.S. are roughly 2.5 times higher than the average rates in other high-income countries, research based on the World Health Organization's Mortality Database has found. These deaths are largely driven by transport accidents, homicide, suicide and drug overdoses, as well as a stalling of improvements in deaths from cardiovascular disease and an increase in metabolic disease mortality.
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However, not all states are equal when it comes to accident and crime-related mortality.
A new study from Caputo and Van Der Walde Injury & Accident Attorneys has compared each state across 10 metrics, including traffic fatalities, workplace injuries, firearm mortality, railway injuries, and crimes against persons and properties to assess which states are the "most dangerous."
So how does your state rank?
When all metrics were considered, these 10 states came up as the most dangerous to live in:
Looking at the top five most dangerous states, New Mexico ranked highly across the board, with high levels of traffic accidents, burglary offenses, assault, homicide, and vehicle theft, as well as firearm mortality almost twice the national average.
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Louisiana came in second place, ranking as the most dangerous state for traffic accidents with at least one fatality per billion miles. The state also has the second-highest assault rate per capita and firearm mortality.
Arkansas, the third most dangerous state to live in, saw almost double the national average of homicides per capita in 2022, at 10.24 per 100,000 compared to the national average of 5.89 per 100,000. The state also ranked the second worst for traffic fatalities.
Alaska at number four ranked highly for assault offences with 540.45 per 100,000 of the population, over twice the national average. Indeed, across all "crimes against persons" categories, which included assault and homicide, Alaska ranked higher than any other state. It also ranked the fourth highest for railway injuries.
Lastly, Missouri came in at fifth place with a relatively high ranking for firearm mortality, assault offenses and vehicle thefts.
At the opposite end of the spectrum, the following five states were ranked as being the least dangerous:
"Living in certain states in America can be particularly dangerous due to high rates of injury from various sources," a spokesperson from Caputo and Van Der Walde Injury and Accident Attorneys said in a statement. "In states like Louisiana, Arkansas, and New Mexico, residents are more likely to suffer injuries from violent crime, car accidents, and workplace incidents.
"Some states will likely benefit from targeted interventions to reduce injury rates and improve safety. This includes implementing stricter traffic laws, enhancing public safety initiatives, and increasing funding for emergency medical services. By addressing these issues, states can help protect their residents from preventable injuries and create safer, healthier communities."