Can I Sue for Being Shot or Stabbed in Kansas City?

Can I sue for being shot or stabbed in Kansas City?

Often, yes. If you were shot or stabbed on a Kansas City property — an apartment complex, bar or nightclub, parking garage, store, hotel, or transit stop — and the owner failed to provide the reasonable security a foreseeable risk called for, Missouri law may let you hold that owner financially responsible through a negligent-security claim. You are not suing for the crime itself; you are suing the property owner for the security failures that made a foreseeable attack possible. This is separate from any criminal case against the attacker.

Kansas City negligent-security law — the short version

Kansas City cases are governed by Missouri law. Missouri imposes a duty only where the business knew or had reason to know similar crime was reasonably likely in that area of the premises (Business Premises Safety Act, §537.787). A negligent-security lawsuit here is generally filed in the 16th Judicial Circuit Court of Jackson County (Jackson County). For the full Missouri standard — deadlines, how fault is shared, and what you can recover — see our Missouri negligent security page.

Public safety in Kansas City

Kansas City has consistently ranked among the higher big-city violent-crime rates, but homicides fell about 20% in 2024 and dropped further in 2025 under the city’s SAVE KC deterrence program — even as non-fatal shootings rose over the same period. A negligent-security claim depends on the documented history of prior incidents at the particular property, not on citywide figures.

Where these cases happen in Kansas City

In Kansas City, these claims commonly arise in the city’s entertainment districts — the Power & Light District, Westport, the Country Club Plaza, 18th & Vine, and the Crossroads — which officials have identified as locations where shootings occur, as well as in higher-crime corridors on the East Side. Common property types are surface parking lots in nightlife districts, apartment complexes, bars and nightclubs, gas stations and convenience stores, hotels, and retail.

Good to know in Kansas City

A Kansas City negligent-security case is generally filed in the 16th Judicial Circuit Court of Jackson County — but because the city spills into Clay, Platte, and Cass Counties, the correct court depends on the property’s actual county, not its mailing address. In November 2025 Kansas City adopted ordinances requiring surface parking lots in entertainment districts to obtain a permit and meet safety standards — security lighting, surveillance cameras, fencing, insurance, and annual inspections — a published local standard directly relevant to lot-security claims.

Deadlines for a Kansas City case

• Negligence / personal injury: generally five years from the date of the incident from the date of the incident.
• Wrongful death: generally three years from the date of death.

Missouri’s five-year personal-injury deadline is longer than in most states — but wrongful-death claims must be filed within three years, and critical evidence disappears fast. Surveillance footage and other evidence disappear quickly, so it is important to act fast.

Why Kansas City victims choose The Haggard Law Firm

The firm has handled nearly 500 negligent-security cases nationwide and secured the largest negligent-security verdict in U.S. history ($102.7 million). We help Kansas City crime victims and their families with no fee unless we win.

How we handle a Missouri case — working with local counsel

The Haggard Law Firm is based in Coral Gables, Florida, and Michael A. Haggard is licensed to practice law in Florida. Mr. Haggard is not licensed in Missouri. Negligent security and crime-victim litigation is the firm’s core focus, and because of the national reputation the firm has built in this specific area, Mr. Haggard regularly works on Missouri cases as co-counsel with a locally licensed Missouri attorney, seeking admission pro hac vice (for the individual case) where the court’s rules permit. Any Missouri matter would be handled together with local counsel admitted in Missouri.

If you were shot, stabbed, or lost a loved one to a preventable crime in Missouri, you can still reach out to us directly. We will review your case for free and, where appropriate, associate with a qualified Missouri attorney to pursue it.

This page is attorney advertising and general information only; it is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Michael A. Haggard is licensed in Florida. Prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.