Most examples of violent crime by mentally ill people were committed first in England, and then in the US, often seeming politically motivated, even when mediated by religion. The first such case was likely that of Peter Berchet, a young Protestant, who felt that he had to kill the royal councilor Christopher Hatton, also a Protestant, whom Berchet believed to be a Catholic sympathizer.
精神病患者暴力犯罪的多数实例相继发生在英国和美国，即便有宗教因素裹挟其中，往往也看似出于政治动机。始作俑者或许是年轻新教徒彼得·博切特，他感到自己必须杀死同为新教徒、但却同情天主教的皇家委员克里斯托弗·哈顿。为了响应自己内心的呼唤，博切特杀害了另一位被误以为哈顿的新教徒。