Violent crimes against the homeless are growing, and most of the perpetrators are teens or children, some as young as 10. There were 142 unprovoked attacks on the homeless in 2007, and often the only apparent reason for the attacks was the attackers thought it’d be fun.
Warren Messner of Florida was 15 when he and his friends attacked and killed Michael Roberts, a homeless man. Messner was high during the attack and doesn’t remember much. Authorities say he put a log across Roberts’ chest and then jumped up and down on it. “It was just a senseless crime,” Messner, now 18, says from prison, where he’s serving a 22-year sentence for second-degree murder. “I wish it would have never happened. It made no sense.” (New York Times)
