The Homeless and Violent Crime

How much more likely is one to be a victim of a violent crime from a homeless or mentally ill person than from a housed, non-mentally ill person?

a. 15 percent more likely—“My sister was beat up by a schizophrenic once…”
b. 10 percent less likely—“How nice homeless people are!”
c. 5 percent more likely
d. 5 percent less likely















Answer:
b. 10 percent less likely. Violent crime is actually less likely to be done by the homeless and the mentally ill. The media tends to focus on the cases of the mentally ill or homeless doing violence, which only increases the false fear that people have of the homeless and mentally ill.