# UK murder survey result - can this be true? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 9, 2008, 5:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-murder-survey-result-can-this-be-true/459382 "2008-08-09T05:48:30Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2008, 5:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-murder-survey-result-can-this-be-true/459382/1 "2008-08-09T05:48:30Z")
There is a regular column in one of Sydney’s Saturday papers with ‘quirky’ statistics. One of today’s is: > [@Sydney Morning Herald](#): > > Proportion of surveyed Britons who personally knew someone who had been murdered: > > 1 in 3 I’m struggling to believe this, I must say. Could a reputable, nationwide survey in Britain really come up with this result? I suppose a lot depends on how one defines ‘personally’. Or perhaps the population that was surveyed all live in some crime-ridden part of a major city? Can any UK Dopers confirm/deny its validity? ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2008, 6:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-murder-survey-result-can-this-be-true/459382/2 "2008-08-09T06:04:19Z")
Well about 800 Brits are murdered each year. About 1 in 75000. Say each person personally knows 1,000 people in their lifetime then over say 25 years about 1/3 will know a murder victim. I knew a guy who was murdered and I worked with a guy who was a murderer. ---
**Author:** ![essell](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/34f0e0/32.png) [@essell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/essell)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2008, 9:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-murder-survey-result-can-this-be-true/459382/3 "2008-08-09T09:47:23Z")
I knew someone who killed her two children and then herself. I guess that means she was a murderer, just not a convicted one. I also knew the brother of a convicted murderer. ---
**Author:** ![Wallenstein](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b5a626/32.png) [@Wallenstein](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wallenstein)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2008, 10:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-murder-survey-result-can-this-be-true/459382/4 "2008-08-09T10:01:05Z")
I don’t know anyone who’s been murdered, or who’s been a murder (to my knowledge). ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2008, 10:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-murder-survey-result-can-this-be-true/459382/5 "2008-08-09T10:39:13Z")
[QUOTE=don’t ask] Well about 800 Brits are murdered each year. About 1 in 75000. Say each person personally knows 1,000 people in their lifetime then over say 25 years about 1/3 will know a murder victim. I knew a guy who was murdered and I worked with a guy who was a murderer. [/QUOTE] That only includes those murdered within the UK. You would also need to add in all those killed abroad, British or otherwise, who were known by a few or a lot of Brits. ---
**Author:** ![ivan\_astikov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@ivan\_astikov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivan_astikov)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2008, 10:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-murder-survey-result-can-this-be-true/459382/6 "2008-08-09T10:44:22Z")
I’ve got a murderer in my family…I don’t know if that helps? ---
**Author:** ![Myglaren](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f1d935/32.png) [@Myglaren](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Myglaren)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2008, 11:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-murder-survey-result-can-this-be-true/459382/7 "2008-08-09T11:02:02Z")
I work with one person that killed their partner (self defence but jailed for manslaughter), one person who’s sister was murdered and another who’s niece was murdered. Also went to school with a convicted murderer. ---
**Author:** ![don\_t\_ask](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e68b1a/32.png) [@don\_t\_ask](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/don_t_ask)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2008, 11:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-murder-survey-result-can-this-be-true/459382/8 "2008-08-09T11:29:18Z")
[QUOTE=GorillaMan] That only includes those murdered within the UK. You would also need to add in all those killed abroad, British or otherwise, who were known by a few or a lot of Brits. [/QUOTE] A perfectly valid point, as the murder victim that I knew personally was an Aussie murdered while living in London. ---
**Author:** ![Lo-Slung\_Denim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f6c823/32.png) [@Lo-Slung\_Denim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lo-Slung_Denim)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2008, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-murder-survey-result-can-this-be-true/459382/9 "2008-08-09T18:45:37Z")
Don’t forget the people(like me) that work in a job that requires you to work with murderers on occasion. This may include working in prisons, psychiatric units, various others that currently do not spring to mind! Possibly the population of Britain is a bit more concentrated than the US or Australia - I would speculate it would be strange for people here to be as isolated as they may be in smaller towns in the outback(but this is pure speculation…I have never been to Australia). For example, there have been 3 murders within a mile of my house this summer. Well, that’s 3 _reported_ murders, that I saw on BBC news, because they were all teenagers. ---
**Author:** ![Alive\_At\_Both\_Ends](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/73ab20/32.png) [@Alive\_At\_Both\_Ends](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alive_At_Both_Ends)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2008, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-murder-survey-result-can-this-be-true/459382/10 "2008-08-09T18:53:48Z")
Also, what does “personally knew” mean here? Does, for instance, someone you knew at school but haven’t seen for thirty years count? ---
**Author:** ![ivan\_astikov](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/58f4c7/32.png) [@ivan\_astikov](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivan_astikov)\ **Post date:** [August 9, 2008, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/uk-murder-survey-result-can-this-be-true/459382/11 "2008-08-09T20:10:42Z")
[QUOTE=Lo-Slung Denim] Don’t forget the people(like me) that work in a job that requires you to work with murderers on occasion. This may include working in prisons, psychiatric units, various others that currently do not spring to mind! \*\*Possibly the population of Britain is a bit more concentrated than the US or Australia \*\*- I would speculate it would be strange for people here to be as isolated as they may be in smaller towns in the outback(but this is pure speculation…I have never been to Australia). For example, there have been 3 murders within a mile of my house this summer. Well, that’s 3 _reported_ murders, that I saw on BBC news, because they were all teenagers. [/QUOTE] (my bolding.) Maybe someone will provide the exact figures, but I’m sure I’ve read that Britain has about 1700 people per sq mile, the USA has about 400, and the Aussies have about 50. Which would indicate a British citizen would be 34 times more likely than an Aussie to know a murderer, or someone who has been murdered. Which doesn’t sound right when they’ve nearly all got criminal ancestors! 😛