A Spatial Analysis of Homicide and Dangerous Buildings in Kansas City, Missouri

Abstract

Criminological theories such as routine activities theory, rational choice theory, broken windows and disorder theory, crime pattern and environmental criminology, and social disorganization and collective efficacy theory all suggest the potentiality of a correlation between the presence of abandoned and dilapidated housing and crime. This thesis investigates the geographical locations of homicides that occurred in Kansas City, Missouri in 2016 and dangerous buildings as identified by the municipality. Examination indicates independent clustering of homicides and dangerous buildings and this clustering occurs in the same locational space within the city. Further, the presence of dangerous buildings within census block groups and in surrounding census block groups is correlated with homicides. This finding remains significant when measures of population, poverty, and vacancy are included in the analysis. These outcomes suggest that policies considering the presence of dangerous buildings in conjunction with other violence prevention strategies may be valuable in reducing homicide.