Traumatic Brain Injury Increases Risk of Violent Crime

As San Fernando Valley accident lawyers find, persons who have suffered a brain injury in a car accident may be at risk for a number of consequences over the long term, and maybe even the rest of their life. These include memory loss, depression, psychiatric disorders, learning disabilities, chronic headaches, attention deficits, and mood swings. To that list, you can also add an increased risk of violent criminal activity.

According to a new study, which has been published in the online journal Public Library of Science Medicine, persons who have suffered a traumatic brain injury are at a higher risk for being involved in a violent crime like homicide, rape and murder after being diagnosed with the injury. The results came from a study that involved all people who had suffered a traumatic brain injury and epilepsy in Sweden between 1973 and 2009. They confirm to San Fernando Valley brain injury lawyers the devastating long-term consequences of a brain injury.

The study which proved the association between traumatic brain injury and an increased risk of violent crime is believed to be the most comprehensive one of its kind, because it involved a large sample of more than 22,000 persons with a brain injury. The researchers found that close to 9% of persons who had a brain injury went on to commit some kind of violent crime, compared to 3% of persons with no brain injury.

According to the researchers, it is important for us to review our current guidelines with respect to long-term brain injury risk assessment, and include a thorough evaluation of the risks of violent criminal activity. Some persons like those who struggle with drug and alcohol problems or suffer from epilepsy, are more likely to commit violent crimes after they suffer a brain injury.