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before bashing the mentally ill

Steve

Well-known member
I would be the first to call one of the recent shooters a lunatic... cause they are

but before we lump all those who suffer from mental illness in one basket and call them all basket cases..

Are the mentally ill more violent?

Experts say unemployment, recent divorce and physical abuse are better predictors of who will become violent than a diagnosis of schizophrenia.

The answer may seem obvious to the general public, given the popularity of movies, TV shows and books in which mentally unbalanced individuals are portrayed as homicidal maniacs. Three-quarters of Americans view mentally ill people as dangerous,

But while the data show that people with certain psychiatric problems do commit violent crimes at a higher rate than those who are seemingly healthy, the vast majority of homicides, arsons and assaults are perpetrated by people who are not considered severely mentally ill.

What's more, other factors, such as unemployment, divorce in the last year and a history of physical abuse, are better predictors of violent behavior than a diagnosis of schizophrenia.

"If a person has severe mental illness without substance abuse and history of violence, he or she has the same chances of being violent during the next three years as any other person in the general population," the study found.

Among those with schizophrenia or a major mood disorder, the rate was 7%, the study reported.

the rate is higher among mentally ill people, but it still means that 93% of them were not violent, he said.

Swanson's research has also found that 19.7% of substance abusers have committed a violent act in the last year, making that demographic nearly three times more dangerous than the mentally ill.

It's also a much smaller group: About 21.8 million Americans over the age of 12 are thought to have recently used an illegal substance and about 17.6 million adults may have issues with alcohol abuse.

blacks (16.2%) and Hispanics (9.4%)

yes these guys are lunatics.. especially the mentally ill ones.. but not all are violent,. and many never commit any crime...

I don't think they should have guns either.. but I would prefer to rely on facts.. and denying them their rights that must not just be based on having a mental problem..

one reason I feel the decision to take away their rights should be individually and based on a actual assessment of the person,.. is to prevent this from being to restrictive and the courts throwing out the entire basis for the laws banning the mentally ill from having a gun..







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Steve

Well-known member
The study of 1,388 combat veterans was completed by a group of researchers led by forensic psychologist Eric B. Elbogen of the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill School of Medicine. The researchers found that about 23 percent of those with PTSD and high irritability had been arrested for a criminal offense. Among all of the combat veterans studied, including those with and without combat trauma, 9 percent had been arrested since their combat deployment.

Previous research has shown that half of all Vietnam combat veterans with PTSD had been arrested one or more times.

A related study by Elbogen and his associates, published earlier this year, found that acts of violence by veterans were more likely to occur if the veteran was homeless, unemployed or under-employed, and had little or no social support such as a functional family. Having a stable living situation and having control over one's life significantly reduced the odds of severe violence, the study concluded.

A 2009 study of enlisted combat Marines with at least one deployment demonstrated that those with PTSD were six times more likely to be busted on drug charges than Marines without PTSD,

"You often hear people say that whenever bad things happen with veterans, it has to be PTSD, but this research shows it's a lot more complicated than that," Elbogen told

The study also determined that other factors not related to military service, including growing up in a violent home and a prior history of substance abuse, also raised the risk that veterans will commit crimes.

seems that substance abuse is more of an indicator of violent crime..

no matter which group it is associated with.. drug and alcohol abuse increase the rate of violent crime...
 
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