The supreme court, the highest court in the state, is composed of a chief justice and six other justices. All justices are appointed by the governor but after one year must run for election at the next general election. They then are elected for six-year terms. In case of rejection by the voters, the vacancy is filled by appointment. An intermediate-level court of appeals consists of a chief judge and six other judges appointed by the governor; like supreme court justices, they must be elected to full terms, in this case for four years.
In January 1977, probate, juvenile, and county courts, as well as magistrate courts of countywide jurisdiction, were replaced by district courts. The 31 district courts are presided over by 156 district and associate district judges and 69 district magistrate judges. Kansas has a death penalty and has executed two persons since 1977. There were 38 prisoners were under sentence of death as of 2003.
The Department of Corrections administers the state correctional system. Kansas had a prison population of 8,543 as of June 2001, a decrease of 2.7% from the previous year. The state's incarceration rate stood at 317 per 100,000. A federal prison is located at Leavenworth. Kansas's crime rate was 4,321.4 per 100,000 inhabitants in 2001, including a total of 10,909 violent crimes and 105,537 crimes against property in that year.