WKYT Investigates | Election allegations on crime and security

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WKYT) – There are just six days until Americans head to the polls to cast their ballot in the 2024 election.

In our WKYT poll, we asked you what your biggest problems were when selecting a candidate.

First and foremost were the cost of living and inflation. Followed by crime and security.

We wanted to talk to industry experts about how data and statistics can influence or sway voters.

Dr. Victoria Collins is a professor at EKU's School of Justice Studies. She is a published author and is passionate about state crime and crimes of the powerful.

Dr. Collins tells us crime and campaigning are nothing new.

“This goes back to the Nixon administration, where we saw a lot of rhetoric targeting street crime,” Dr. Collins. “I think one of the most obvious examples would be George Bush with Willie Horton, where as part of his campaign theme he focused heavily on Willie Horton, who was actually on the furlough scheme and committed some crimes, which he could do.” Switch a whole bunch of campaign ads and provide insights and fears on this issue and win this election.”

WKYT wanted to verify a popular claim that has been made between parties: Crime is increasing across the country.

This is mostly false.

The FBI released data last month listing more than 14 million crimes across the country in 2023.

Violent crime in the US fell 3% compared to the previous year.

According to state police, it's down 2% here in Kentucky.

Property crimes fell 2% across the country and increased slightly by 1% in the Commonwealth.

Motor vehicle theft is a category that has seen a large increase. Reports are up 13% nationally and 18% in the Bluegrass State.

Burglaries have declined in both the United States and Kentucky.

“In Kentucky, what I find really interesting, we rank eighth in the nation when it comes to violent crime and 12th when it comes to property crime. So Kentucky does really well when it comes to crime.”

However, it's not just numbers and statistics. It's also about perception.

“A Gallup poll showed that more people are worried about crime than they should be,” Dr. Collins. “Most people, about six in 10 Americans, are actually worried about crime. But interestingly, when you ask them about their local communities, they say they're not worried about their immediate approximate local community, but we're worried beyond that.”

We asked whether the candidates' track records and pasts would be used against them, one as a prosecutor, the other as a defense attorney. Both are frequently mentioned in campaign ads.

“I also think, and science will tell you this, that there tends to be less concern about white-collar crime or corporate crime,” she said. “For some reason, as a society, we care less about it. I think sometimes that's because these crimes can be complicated and people in powerful positions were involved. There is great concern about cross-border crime. Harris will talk about her experiences as a prosecutor, and I think people often equate that with cartels and so on. We see a lot of that on TV, so I think that can have an impact on that too.”

Overall, crime has increased by about 5 percent in the last decade.

To view some of the data, click here for FBI numbers. If you would like to see a breakdown of crime in Kentucky by county, click here.

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