The Horrific Incidents In Aurora, Colorado, and Newtown, Connecticut Have Reignited Societal
Perceptions of Mentally Ill People As Dangerous and Criminals. Unfortunately, Rather Than Research,
This Perception Is Founded on Speculation and Fear. the Empirical Studies on Mental Illness and Criminal
Conduct Is Reviewed In the Following Article. This Literature Reveals Three Important Trends. First, Compared
To the General Population, the Frequency of Mental Illness Is Significantly Greater Among Those Who Have
Had Experience With the Criminal Justice System. Second, People With Psychotic and Externalising
Behavioural Disorders, Especially Those Who Abuse Drugs and Alcohol, Are More Likely to Commit Acts Of
Violence Than People With Other Types of Mental Illness. Third, Mental Illness Is One of Several
Criminogenic Risk Variables That Interact In Complicated Ways to Influence Individual Behaviour.