Mexico the Most Dangerous Country for Americans
Wednesday, December 23, 2009 at 3:39PM 
U.S. Department of State Warns Largest Number of Non Natural Deaths Occur in Mexico.
Derek Armstrong, Chief Crime Correspondent
Crime Report USA
Mexico is overwhelmingly the most dangerous place for non-service Americans, topping the list of destinations with the highest "Non Natural Deaths", according to the US Department of State:
Top 5 Countries for Non Natural Deaths
Mexico 651
Iraq 82
Costa Rica 69
Thailand 67
Germany 63
Total Number of Non-Natural Deaths abroad: 2029
Vehicle Accidents 677
Homicides 580
Suicides 289
Drowning 265
Air Accidents 66
Terrorist Action 54
Drug-Related 59
Maritime 22
Mexico Not Friendly to American Film Crews or Tourists
Even professional ventures must be cautious in Mexican territory. Early in 2009, Mexican drug cartels ran an American film crew out of town.They may not have liked the theme--a story about a cocaine smuggler that would have starred Sir Ben Kingsley, Eva Mendes and Josh Hartnett--but they definitely didn't like Americans in town and delivered death threats to the crew.
Typical Cases of Deaths in Mexico
- An American man from Stillwater, vactationing in Puerto Vallarta, was fund dead in his room at the Sheranton hotel.
- Dr. William Campbell of the Ozarks Community Hospital died while vacationing with his family in Mexico.
- A former professor was found beaten to death in Guadalajara, Mexico.
Reported Causes of Death
Causes of Death are officially reported to U.S. Department of State. Reliability of data does depend on the information provided by sovereign nations, but topping the list of causes are:
- homicide
- suicide
- vehicle accident
- execution
- drowning
- air accidents
- "drug related"
Homicides and vehicle accident far out number other causes.
While the cummulative total from 2006 to 2008 of "Non Natural deaths" was 651 for Mexico (32%), Iraq was a distant second at only 82 non natural deaths (4%) followed by Costa Rica, Thailand and Germany. Of these, in all nations, the totals by cause were:
- 33.4% Vehicle Accidents
- 29% homicides
- 14.2% suicides (as reported by soveign authorities)
- 13.1% drownings
- 3.3% air accidents
- 2.7% terrorist action
- 2.9% drug related
Homicides Trending Up in Mexico
In total, the homcide rate as a percentage of total deaths, climbed in 2008 versus 2006, while the vehicle accidents rate stayed fairly close in the same period. Suicides climbed marginally.
Derek Armstrong is a journalist contributor to several TV news shows, magazines and newspapers. He has appeared as a reporter on HNN's Nancy Grace, the Larry King Show, MSNBC News, FOX News, Inside Edition, NBC's Dateline and the Dr. Phil Show. Armstrong is currently chief crime correspondent for Crime Report USA and contributes to Films & Books Magazine (http://www.filmsandbooks.com ), Advance Magazine, Canadian Money Magazine, Secure Net News, LINK World News Magazine, and EDI Weekly . Derek Armstrong is a member of the Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ).
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Reader Comments (3)
I'll just take one thing, the most recent death of Josh Gunderson in Puerto Vallarta. He attacked a American female while drunk, Gunderson's blood alcohol level was .12 percent. Got into a fight with the other American room mate and died when he choked on his own vomit.
Sure Mexico is a real dangerous place for drunk American juveniles. The parents are to blame!
Funny thing is the 'other American room mate' was the bodyguard for the female, sent down by her father, presumedly to protect her from all those Mexican villains. LOL
Yet this goes down as Non Natural death and is humped onto the country it occurred in, not the nationalities of the people involved. Shame !
Thanks for your comment JR. The US Department of State reports on all non-natural deaths. Of course there are other factors, such as the very high rate of visitors from the US. If the statistics were tabulated statistically as "non natural deaths" against "total visits" Mexico would certainly compare with many other destinations. The statistics in this report were strictly "Non natural deaths as a percentage or number of total non-natural deaths." Of course, this will not favor Mexico statistics, simply because so many visit, but this is how the Department of State reports.
All non-natural deaths are tabulated, including cases very much like Josh Gunderson. While you could argue successfully that alcohol-related deaths occur in all travel destinations, it's part of the overall tabulation of "non natural deaths." The reports from US Department of State are a total compilation of "non natural deaths" which includes traffic accidents, drowning, and so on. I don't think anything in the numbers implies overwhelming danger due to homicide or criminal activity, other than a slightly higher rate compared to other destinations (*which grew slightly 2006-08), and the homicide rate, which applies to all destinations. Like it or not, Mexico is a very popular destination for American tourists, so "non natural deaths" will happen in relatively high numbers. This is also the way the US Department of State records and tabulates the data. The section outlining causes of "non natural deaths" are also clearly reported as "in all countries" and do not reflect on Mexico.
Sincerely, Derek Armstrong, Correspondent
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