Last week we listed the worst ten states for violent crime (murder, rape, armed robbery, assault, etc). As might be expected, there is a lot of overlap with the top ten states for murders. And, as might be expected, unless you are the gun rights type that actually believes possessing a gun makes you safer, the states with the highest murder rates tend to be very gun friendly.

Murder rate per 100,000 citizens in the US is 3.8. Here are the worst ten states:

1. Louisiana – 9.6 murders per 100k
2. Maryland – 7.3 murders per 100k
3. Missouri – 7.0 murders per 100k
4. South Carolina – 6.1 murders per 100k
5. Nevada – 5.9 murders per 100k
6. New Mexico – 5.7 murders per 100k
7. Michigan – 5.6 murders per 100k
8. Tennessee – 5.6 murders per 100k
9. Mississippi – 5.6 murders per 100k
10. Arizona – 5.5 murders per 100k

There are many things that impact murder and crime rates. Economic status, education, rural versus urban, and more. But there is little doubt that easy access to guns is NOT making these states safer than states with tougher gun laws.