Per Capita stats are the only way to compare a state that has 20 million and a state that has 3 million. Attacking U of Elvis over that shows a severe lack of understanding of statistics.
That being said, Mississippi has a violence problem because police control is local. A lot of cities like Jackson, Mississippi and others with very high crime rates employ catch and release policies. The governor does not control policing or prosecution in counties, nor should he. It is a local matter.
As I should in the graph for New York city-
Super red states like Wyoming and Idaho have next to no homicides in their states. Culturally mixed states have more. But, even violent cultures like New York City were brought to heel by strong policing.
Once you start putting away people for petty crimes the murder rate goes down. Because people that commit petty crime are the same people that would murder. Because petty crime shows they don't care about others much, which makes it easier for them to murder others.
In other words if you want to live in a safe area, move to a town that has a strong prosecutor. No bleeding heart catch and release policy that leads to more murders.