The two Allegheny County men accused of killing eight people and wounding three in shooting rampages in the last two months share more than a history of mental illness. They also shared lives of relative isolation. Richard Baumhammers, accused of shooting to death five people and paralyzing another April 28, resided with his parents in Mt. Lebanon. But he tried to find a mate through classified ads, not in person, and he chatted with neighbors on the Internet, not on the sidewalk that connects their homes. Ronald Taylor, charged with shooting to death three men and wounding two others March 1, maintained some contact with family members, but lived alone in an apartment in Wilkinsburg.
Experts say social isolation for the mentally ill is distressingly common.
They understand why it happens. Not only do many people fear and thus avoid the mentally ill, but the people who suffer from the illness also shy away from social settings because they're aware that people think they're odd, and they hear the ridicule. The mentally ill are no more likely to be violent than anyone else. It's hard to prove mental illness in court. But isolation may allow a sick person to worsen dramatically without intervention.