The Missoula Mauler. The Serial Killer Clown. The Giggling Granny. The BTK Killer.
These names may send chills through anyone familiar with America’s true crime history. Each bizarre alias belonging to a different serial killer, each from a different state.
One was a serial sex killer who terrorized Montana until a would-be victim turned the tables, another murdered at least 33 boys and young men in the Chicago area, one poisoned 11 relatives – including her own husbands – in the Deep South, and another one bound, tortured, and killed dozens in Kansas.
And now, according to a new study by Summit Defense Criminal Lawyers, those states share a chilling legacy – they rank among the top 10 in the nation for producing the most serial killers per capita.
The research analyzed documented serial murderers across all 50 states up through July 2025, calculating rates based on population and measuring victim counts to determine where these crimes were most devastating.
And the findings reveal that rural states dominate the rankings – and that Montana, Kansas and Louisiana sit at the top of America’s darkest list.
“The data reveals that Montana’s killers are not only more numerous but also significantly more deadly than those from other states,” a Summit Defense Criminal Lawyers spokesperson said.
“Illinois leads in absolute numbers, yet Montana’s smaller group caused proportionally more devastation. The research highlights how some states consistently breed more dangerous criminals who claim higher victim counts. What’s also worth noting is that rural states appear disproportionately represented in the top rankings, challenging urban crime stereotypes.”
Here’s a look at the top 10 U.S. states that produce the most serial killers per capita:
1. Montana
Montana ranks first with a rate of around eight serial killers per 1 million residents.
Montana’s criminals prove exceptionally deadly, responsible for nearly 49 deaths per million population – the highest victim rate in the nation. This combination of frequent killers and high lethality makes Montana uniquely dangerous in American crime statistics.
- Wayne Nance, “The Missoula Mauler”: Nance was suspected of at least six murders from 1974 to 1986 before he was shot and killed by a would-be victim. Police believe he may have had many more undiscovered victims.
- David Meirhofer “The Mindless Monster”: Meirhofer confessed to four murders – three of which were children – in rural Montana between 1967 and 1974. Hours after his confession, he killed himself in jail and was never tried for the murders.
- David Thomas Dawson: Dawson murdered three members of the Rodstein family in Billings in 1986. He was executed in 1987 at the age of 48.
- Theodore “Ted” Kaczynski, The Unabomber – While his nationwide bombing spree defined his crimes, his Montana cabin became his base of operations. He killed three people during his 17-year bombing campaign between 1978 and 1995.
2. Kansas
Kansas lands in second place with approximately five serial killers per capita. The Sunflower state shows roughly 14 victims of serial killers when adjusted for population size.
Its most infamous murderer is Dennis Rader, the BTK Killer, a nickname he gave himself, which stands for “bind, torture, kill.”
Rader bound, tortured, and killed 10 victims between 1974 and 1991. What made him particularly noteworthy is the cat and mouse game he played with authorities. At each crime scene, he would leave a clue as to who he was.
He is currently serving his 10 life sentences in prison.
But police are still connecting him to potential victims.
In 2023, the Osage County Sheriff’s Office released chilling images that depict three different women who are bound and gagged in what appear to be barns, which investigators believe could be in Oklahoma, Kansas and Missouri. The drawings were first recovered by the authorities after Rader’s arrest in 2005.
3. Louisiana
Louisiana claims third place with nearly five serial killers per capita, and about 28 deaths, ranking second nationally in deadly consequences.
Notorious killers include Derrick Todd Lee, known as the “Baton Rouge Serial Killer,” who murdered at least seven women between 1992 and 2003.
Going back to the 1910s, is the story of 19-year-old Clementine Barnabet, who confessed to killing 17 people with an axe on behalf of the Church of Sacrifice in what became known as the “Voodoo Murders.” She was sentenced to life in prison.
4. Rhode Island
Though small in size, Rhode Island ranks fourth with five serial killers per capita.
Among its most infamous is Craig Price, a teenager who murdered four people in the 1980s, a woman and her daughters one year and another woman two years later.
The murders were carried out before Price turned 16. He remains incarcerated, serving a sentence extended after multiple violent incidents behind bars.
5. Maine
Maine rounds out the top five with nearly four serial killers per capita. The state shows a disturbing victim rate of 28, placing it third nationally in lethality, despite its reputation for quiet coastal towns and forests,
- James Hicks: In 2000, Hicks confessed to murdering and dismembering three women between 1977 and 1994. He was convicted in 2009.
- Albert Flick: Flick stabbed his wife to death and was convicted in 1979. When he got out of prison in 2000 at the age of 77, he continued his killing spree and murdered a woman in front of her two children.
6. Missouri
Missouri holds sixth place, with four serial killers per capita and 19 victims recorded.
Its most infamous murderer, Maury Travis, kidnapped, tortured, and killed at least 12 women – primarily sex workers – with at least one of the slayings caught on video that he recorded.
After being arrested, Travis committed suicide in 2002.
7. Oklahoma
Oklahoma lands in seventh place with around three serial killers per capita.
One of its most chilling figures was Daniel Lewis Lee, a one-time white supremacist who was convicted of murdering a family of three in 1996. He was executed in 2020.
8. Illinois
Illinois ranks eighth but stands apart for producing the highest number of serial killers in the top 10 list – 37 in total.
Many of them had unique nicknames like “The Serial Killer Clown” and “The Lipstick Killer.”
- John Wayne Gacy: The most notorious of them, Gacy, also known as “The Serial Killer Clown,” murdered at least 33 boys and young men in the Chicago area in the 1970s. Gacy, who worked as a clown performer for children’s parties, earned his nickname because of the clown costume he often wore while killing his victims. He would sexually assault the boys, strangle them with rope, and then bury their bodies under his house. He was found guilty on all 33 counts of murder and was put to death in 1994.
- William Heirens, who became known as “The Lipstick Killer,” murdered two women and a young girl in the 1980s, leaving behind messages written in lipstick at the crime scenes, which earned him the nickname.He was sentenced to life in prison.
- Bruce Everitt Lindahl is believed to have committed at least 12 murders and nine rapes in different Chicago suburbs from 1974 to 1981. Most recently, in 2024, DNA evidence linked him to the murder of Kathy Halle in Illinois in March 1979.
9. Alabama
Alabama comes in ninth with nearly three serial killers per capita and 20 proportional victims.
Its most infamous is Nannie Doss, “The Giggling Granny,” an Alabama native who poisoned 11 relatives over several decades, including four of her own husbands.
The other victims included two of her children, her own mother, her mother-in-law, one of her own sisters and two of her grandsons.
Doss was 59 years old when she died in custody after she was diagnosed with leukemia, according to People Magazine.
10. Indiana
Indiana completes the list with roughly three serial killers per capita and around 18 victims.
Among its most disturbing killers was Herb Baumeister, who is believed to be the most prolific serial killer in Indiana history, with at least 25 bodies buried at his Fox Hollow farm in Indiana.
Baumeister lived at the farm with his wife and children, but was leading a double life. At night, he cruised gay bars, picking up young men and luring them back.
His murder spree ended in 1994, when his son found a human skull and a pile of bones in the woods near their home. Police found 11 bodies buried on the property and issued a warrant for his arrest.
Baumeister committed suicide without ever facing trial. After his death, more bodies were found. As of 2025, investigators have located over 10,000 bone fragments on the property and have identified 10 people, but at least three still remain a mystery.
The most recent victim to be identified was Daniel Thomas Halloran. Investigators say there could be as many as 25 additional people buried at Fox Hollow Farm.
Larry William Eyler “The Interstate Killer”: Eyler, an Indiana native, killed at least 21 teenage boys and young men across Indiana and Illinois between 1982 and 1984.
His victims were all discovered in locations close to or accessible by the Interstate, leading to his nickname “The Interstate Killer” or sometimes, “The Highway Killer.”
Eyler died of AIDS-related complications in 1994 while incarcerated on death row.
