Schizophrenia & Crime

Symptoms Symptoms usually start around adolescence or early twenties and consist of: · Hallucinations · Trouble with decision making · Problems with short term memory · Delusions · Issues with logical thinking · Agitated/repetitive movements · Lack of emotion when speaking/speaking very little · Lack of pleasure in everyday activities. · Attention issues Example of Extreme Symptoms - Charles Manson One of the best examples of a criminal with schizophrenia would be Charles Manson. Manson and his followers, the "Manson Family," were responsible for the murder of seven people in a crime spree in August of 1969. He had this idea of a race war that he called 'Helter Skelter' that he took from the song by the Beatles. It's sort of ironic that he used 'helter skelter' because the definition of that is "in disorderly haste or confusion." That definition basically described himself and his followers. He believe...

Image: (n.d.).  Retrieved from http://www.schizophrenia.com/szfacts.htm Blanco, J. I. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://murderpedia.org/male.G/g/gonzalez-daniel.htm Dangerous Minds: Mental Illnesses of Infamous Criminals. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.forensicscolleges.com/blog/resources/dangerous-minds-criminal-mental-illness Image: Ed Gein (2018, April 14). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ed_Gein Five Serial Killers Afflicted With Mental Disorders. (2017, July 07). Retrieved from https://serialkillershop.com/blogs/true-crime/five-serial-killers-afflicted-with-mental-disorders Juzwiak , R. (2017, January 23). There's More Than One Boogeyman in the Slender Man Doc . Retrieved from https://themuse.jezebel.com/theres-more-than-one-boogeyman-in-the-slender-man-doc-1791446034 Image: Leight, E. (2018, February 01) 'Slenderman' Stabbing Teen Gets 40 Years in Mental Institution. Retrieved from https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/news/slende...

In short: no. We do not need to worry or demonize people with schizophrenia, as Jack Pemment of blametheamygdala.wordpress.com explains "Schizophrenic individuals do not usually present with violent behavior, and the odds of a schizophrenic committing serial murder are probably about the same as me winning the jackpot from numerous Vegas casinos in one night". While violent outbursts can be common among people with schizophrenia, it is uncommon for premeditated and malicious murders to take place. Schizophrenia is extremely common as the following graph from schizophrenia.com illustrates, whereas serial killings are not. We as a society have no reason to be fearful of people who have been diagnosed with schizophrenia, as the chance of these people committing malicious, premeditated crimes is very slim.

Convicted Criminals Diagnosed with Schizophrenia Include: Morgan Geyser - An girl with undiagnosed schizophrenia, who at only 12 years old was responsible for instigating the 2014 stabbing and attempted murder of Payton Leutner, more commonly known as the "Slenderman stabbing". Her strong belief that the fictional character Slenderman was real and her need to impress him, along with other issues separating fiction and reality, lead to her diagnosis. Richard Chase - More commonly known as "The Vampire of Sacramento", Chase had paranoid schizophrenia and antisocial personality disorder. By his late teens he began to answer to voices that were never there and became extremely paranoid and delusional about his health, leading to multiple doctors diagnosing him with paranoid schizophrenia. The murders of the 6 people he is responsible for is far more likely due to his antisocial personality disorder, as it is not common for people with only schizophrenia to comm...

In the past, there were 5 different types. The new DSM-5 was published in 2013 and in this edition, they got rid of the separate types because it put limits on being able to diagnose someone. The 5 types of Schizophrenia from the past are... Paranoid Disorganized, or hebephrenic Catatonic Childhood Schizoaffective Disorder Defining each type is so hard to do considering they have extremely similar signs and symptoms. This is the main reason why the DSM-5 eliminated the different subtypes. It made diagnosing very difficult. Although the subtypes have been eliminated, many people still refer to them. Paranoid schizophrenia is probably the one that most people imagine when they hear the term schizophrenia. It is most often depicted in movies and TV shows.

Emil Kraepelin He was the German psychiatrist who distinguished schizophrenia from other forms of psychosis. He made the distinction in his 6th edition of his psychiatry textbook in 1899. He called it dementia praecox. Paul Eugen Bleuler He was the Swiss psychiatrist who c oined the term ‘Schizophrenia’ in 1911. The term is derived from the Greek words ‘schizo’ and ‘phren’ which translates to “split mind”. He believed that the dissociation of thoughts and feelings the distinguishing symptoms of the disorder.